Jerel Wert, Jerod Obituary, Death – Nearly a week has passed since a pickup truck veered off the Arlington Memorial Bridge and plunged into the Potomac River following a collision.
In an update provided on January 22, the United States Park Police (USPP) informed DC News Now that the two individuals involved were identified as Jerod and Jerel Wert, both 52 years old and residents of Chesapeake Beach, Maryland. The identity of the driver remains uncertain, and the investigation is still in progress.
The incident occurred on the evening of January 16, when the pickup truck collided with another vehicle. The force of the impact caused the truck to veer off course, breach the bridge’s concrete railing, and fall into the frigid waters of the Potomac River.
Multiple first responders, including the DC Fire and EMS Department and D.C. police, were dispatched to the scene. Dive teams conducted searches for the truck and its occupants. Officials reported that after approximately 22 minutes, one of the men was retrieved from the water and transported to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
On Friday afternoon, dive teams returned to the Arlington Memorial Bridge and recovered the second man from the submerged truck. He was pronounced dead at the scene.