Salem County, NJ : Former Miss NJ critically injured in a one-car accident on Route 55 in Pittsgrove Township on Monday night, February 15, 2016

A former Miss New Jersey, Cara McCollum, 24, who has been working as an anchor for an upstart TV channel, was critically injured in a one-car accident Monday night on Route 55 in Pittsgrove Township, New Jersey state police said.

McCollum, of Margate, N.J., is in critical condition with head injuries at Cooper University Hospital in Camden after the 6:53 p.m. accident in Salem County, said Sgt. First Class Gregory Williams of the state police.

She was driving a 2014 convertible Ford Mustang north when her car veered onto the dirt shoulder, hit a tree, spun, and hit two more trees at mile marker 38.4, Williams said.

Investigators found that "the driver appeared to have been traveling at unsafe speed for the wet roadway," Williams said, adding police do not believe alcohol or drugs were a factor.

State police said later Tuesday that McCollum was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
McCollum is a 2015 graduate of Princeton University who was crowned Miss New Jersey in 2013. The Arkansas native has been working for SNJ Today, a news service based in Millville.

SNJ Today announced the accident on its Facebook page by saying, "Cara is a beloved member of our SNJ Today family. She and her family are in our thoughts and prayers."

Staff writer Amy S. Rosenberg contributed to this article.

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Former Miss NJ critically injured in crash