17-Year-Old Killed In Westbury Crash
WESTBURY, NY (CBSNewYork) - A 17-year-old student was killed and three other people were injured in a two-car collision in Westbury Tuesday, police said.
Hunks of metal hung in the trees, and debris was scattered across the grass, tragic markers of the car crash that killed 17-year-old Frankie Posillico and seriously wounded Dan Roche and Joe Scaperrotti, reports CBS 2's Kathryn Brown.
They were three young men with promising futures, and now their Long Island community is in shock.
Podcast
1010 WINS' Mona Rivera reports
Podcast
WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reports
"We really don't know what happened yet, so I don't know what to say," Posillico's aunt said.
Police say Posillico was behind the wheel of his BMW – a Christmas present – driving his friend home from the gym. They say he blew through a stop sign and plowed into another car, sending both careening off the side of the road.
Posillico was ejected from the vehicle and killed instantly.
"He was a good kid. He was a really good kid," a relative told 1010 WINS' Mona Rivera.
Police said 16-year-old Daniel Roche suffered spinal injuries and is in a coma. He is listed in critical condition. The other teen, Joseph Scaperrotta, 16, is listed in serious but stable condition. The driver of the other vehicle was not seriously injured.
"It appears that this was a matter of high speed, inexperience and a stop sign that was not observed," Detective Lieutenant Ray Cote, of the Nassau County Police Department, said.
The tragedy has touched nearly everyone in the town of Westbury, but perhaps no place feels the pain as intensely as the local firehouse.
Roche is a relative of one of the members, and Scaperrotta is the son of one of the firefighters. His father responded to the call without knowing his son was involved.
Posillico was a junior volunteer firefighter for four years.
"They're taking it pretty rough because they do have pagers, they come to all the calls, and when they show up at the scene knowing it's their friends, it's tough on them," Chief Patrick Cody said.
Residents in the area say the intersection – in fact, the entire street – is dangerous, and they've seen countless accidents there, each time praying a lesson is learned.
"I've seen more kids die in this neighborhood die in the last six or seven years than I have in my whole lifetime," one resident said.
Now one more young man has been added to that list, and two others are clinging to life.
