On Long Island, two adolescents were killed when a drunk driver travelling the wrong way on a highway crashed into their car.
According to officials, the incident happened on Wednesday night in a suburb of Nassau County. Around 10.30 p.m., Amandeep Singh was travelling south in a northbound lane on a roadway in Jericho, New York, when he collided with a vehicle carrying four teens who were leaving a tennis match.
The youngsters were travelling on the right side of a small Alfa Romeo sedan, driven by Singh, 34, who was also driving a Dodge pickup truck.
‘One of the most catastrophic scenes I’ve seen in a long time. The debris field was almost like the car exploded,’ Nassau County Police Captain Stephen Fitzpatrick said. ‘The pickup truck went airborne, spinning, and landed 300 feet away.’
The crash killed the two 14-year-old boys sitting on the right side of the car. They have not yet been identified by authorities, but NBC New York confirmed their identities as Drew Hassenbein and Ethan Falkowitz, citing a note sent to parents at Roslyn Public Schools.
The two 14-year-olds were described as ‘stars’ in youth tennis. Despite being middle school students, the two teenagers both played for the Roslyn High School varsity team.
The two teenagers on the left side of the vehicle, a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old, were injured and hospitalized in stable condition.
Additionally, the sedan struck another nearby car, carrying a 49-year-old woman and a 16-year-old boy. Both at the scene for minor injuries.
Singh tried to flee from the scene on foot before officers arrived, according to the felony complaint filed against him.
The suspect didn’t get far, and when he was located by police down the street they noticed ‘glassy, bloodshot eyes, a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath, blood on his shirt, and a laceration to the back of his head.’
A breathalyzer test revealed Singh had a 0.18% blood-alcohol level, which is more than twice the legal limit to drive.
At a press briefing after Singh’s first court appearance, Captain Fitzpatrick said the Roslyn, New York resident was ‘highly intoxicated’ and told officers he was coming from a birthday party.
‘He thought he was in New Jersey. He asked our officers, “what are you doing here, it’s New Jersey?”‘
Singh has been charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, first-degree vehicular manslaughter, second-degree manslaughter, leaving the scene of an accident with a fatality, driving while intoxicated, and two counts of second-degree assault.