BABYLON, N.Y. – At least four people were killed and another nine injured when a driver crashed a minivan through the front of a nail salon on Long Island, New York, Friday afternoon, officials said.
The incident occurred at 4:42 p.m. local time at the Hawaii Nail & Spa on Grand Avenue in Deer Park in Suffolk County.
Dominic Albanese, third assistant chief for the Deer Park Volunteer Fire Department, said in a news briefing that four people were pronounced dead at the scene and nine were rushed to area hospitals, one of whom was airlifted by helicopter. Several people had to be extricated, Albanese said.
“It appears a motorist drove through the building, all the way through the building,” Albanese said.
CBS2
The driver was among those hospitalized. The conditions of the injured victims was unknown.
Those killed in the crash were inside the building, Albanese said. No names have been released.
The minivan remained lodged deep in the back of the salon for hours, and 150 firefighters and emergency responders were on scene, Albanese said.
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
Nail salon customers among 9 injured victims
At least two of the injured victims were customers at the nail salon.
Virginia Garcia told CBS New York her 20-year-old niece is among those hurt. Garcia says her niece is in a lot of pain and extremely emotional after the incident.
“The lady that was sitting next to her died. So she was more nervous because when she saw that the other lady died, she was like, God saved her life, basically … She’s lucky that she’s alive, actually,” Garcia said.
She says her niece most likely has some broken bones.
One customer who usually has a standing 4:30 p.m. appointment on Fridays happened to switch days this week. She showed up after hearing the news.
“I don’t even know who’s gone, who’s not gone. I just keep picturing their faces in my head,” customer Jasmin Darbouze said.
Witnesses say driver was swerving around cars before crash
Witnesses say the driver was leaving the Kohl’s parking lot across the street, swerving around cars, before losing control and careening into the nail salon.
“It’s not a car accident. It’s like, you hear glass shattering, you don’t hear like metal-to-metal. It’s not the same sound,” witness Eric Perez said.
A chaplain arrived at the scene Friday afternoon, offering a listening ear to victims’ families as well as emergency responders.
“If someone wants to speak, if someone wants just to have our presence here, that’s what we come out for,” said Andrea Sampson, with the New York State Chaplain Task Force.
“It’s horrible. It’s going to be tough for the community, tough for the volunteer fire department, but we’re going to get through it,” Albanese said.
Source Agencies
