Plainfield crash victim’s family wants safer intersection

The driver involved in a crash that killed a 10-year-old girl in Plainfield Monday has been issued a ticket for failing to stop at a stop sign. Candles were placed at the scene where Isabella Cartagena

News 12 Staff

Oct 28, 2015, 2:52 AM

Updated 3,388 days ago

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The driver involved in a crash that killed a 10-year-old girl in Plainfield Monday has been issued a ticket for failing to stop at a stop sign.
Candles were placed at the scene where Isabella Cartagena died. Family members visited the scene Tuesday afternoon and were inconsolable. The family had recently moved to New Jersey from Colombia.
Community activist Carmen Salvarrita has been trying to help raise money so that the family can send the girl's body back to Colombia.
"They are very sad. She was their only daughter. The family is devastated right now," says Salvarrita. "They can't understand how this could happen."
Cartagena was riding in a minivan with five other children on their way to school when their van was struck by the 28-year-old driver who failed to stop at the intersection of West Ninth Street and Arlington Avenue. The minivan flipped onto its side. The other children and the two drivers were treated for minor injuries.
Plainfield Mayor Adrian Mapp tells News 12 New Jersey that there have been five accidents at this intersection this year and he is now pushing to get the intersection turned into a four-way stop. For now, new signs have been placed to remind drivers to slow down.