The Fair Lawn Bump

For those of you familiar with Fair Lawn, NJ - you know about the bump outside of Radburn pool. Dangerous? Maybe. Funtimes? Definitely. But if you're not from Fair Lawn, don't attempt to enjoy it. We're watching - and only Fair Lawnians survive.

According to NorthJersey.com, a group of Paramus teens were joy riding around Fair Lawn (people still do that??) and escaped serious injury when their car flipped over after they intentionally drove over the Fair Lawn Bump at a high rate of speed.

From the website:

A 16-year-old front passenger, who had to be extricated from the 2007 Chevrolet Impala on Monday night, was taken to St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, said Fair Lawn police Sgt. Derek Bastinck. His condition was not immediately known Tuesday.

The 17-year-old driver and two 16-year-old rear passengers were able to crawl out of the vehicle without any serious injuries, Bastinck said, calling them “very lucky.”

“They think this is funny, but this is a good example of what happens when you start fooling around in a motor vehicle,” Bastinck said. “This could have been a lot worse. We’ve been to many accidents where it ends in a fatal disaster.”

The “Radburn bump,” as it is commonly called by locals, is located on Howard Avenue, which runs into Radburn Road, Bastinck said. The area is near a park and the Radburn Elementary School.

“It’s a drop-off in the road,” he said, describing the bump. “If you go too fast, the car will go airborne. It’s kind of a known thing in town.”

And that’s what happened with this group of thrill-seekers traveling eastbound on Howard Avenue shortly before 10 p.m. Monday.

“The driver lost control and ended up overturning,” Bastinck said.

In addition to going airborne, the car smacked into the ground, rolled over and hit a guardrail and a parked car before coming to rest, he said.

“I guess they think it’s a cool thing to do, but obviously it’s not a good thing to do,” Bastinck said. “Occasionally kids do dumb things. … This is an example of not using good judgment while driving.”

Summonses were pending Tuesday afternoon, Bastinck said, adding that the driver was operating the vehicle with a provisional license and had too many people in the car. State law forbids a 17-year-old from having more than one passenger in the car unless the passenger is over age 21 or lives with the driver.

Police are continuing to investigate the accident and do not believe all the occupants were wearing seat belts.

“It’s pretty serious,” he said. “This is a parent’s nightmare.”

Cool, I know what I'm doing tonight!