SYOSSET, Long Island, N.Y. — A 74-year-old ambulette man died when a vehicle struck the man while he was standing on the shoulder of the road. Police say that the fatal crash happened around 7:15 a.m. The ambulette driver was talking to another motorist on the side of the road when a third vehicle struck the car, the ambulette, and the ambulette driver. Rescue crews pronounced the man deceased from his injuries at the scene of the crash. The vehicles were all headed southerly on Route 135, also known as the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway. The Nassau County police department is investigating according to a report filed by the Daily Voice.
The preliminary investigation initiated by the Nassau County police department revealed that the 74-year-old ambulette driver from Hempstead was driving a patient to a local hospital. A family member of the patient was following the ambulette in the family member’s vehicle. The ambulette driver stopped in the breakdown lane alongside Route 135 and got out of the ambulette to discuss directions to the hospital with the family member of the patient. While out along the side of the road, a black Infiniti sedan sideswiped the car and the ambulette, colliding with the ambulette driver in the process. The Infiniti rolled another 100 yards away from the scene of the crash.
A Nassau County police spokesperson said that the investigating officers have ruled out alcohol as a contributing factor in the crash. The officers said that they are working on a theory that the driver of the Infiniti could have been using a cellphone or was otherwise distracted while driving. The Nassau County police investigators did not make any arrests. They did note that the driver of the Infiniti stayed at the scene of the crash. The Nassau County police investigators did not discuss whether the patient or the driver in the car following the ambulette were hurt in the accident.
[contact_js_widget content=”Have you lost a loved one in an accident?” button=”Click To Get A Free Case Review” link=”/new-york/contact/”]