What was supposed to be a day of pride, festivity and celebration turned into a tragedy for several families in New York. Three people were killed and six others injured after a man crashed the truck he was driving in a park on Manhattan’s Lower East Side on Thursday night during the Fourth of July celebrations. The driver, identified Friday as Daniel Hyden, 44, of Monmouth Junction, New Jersey, is believed to have been driving while intoxicated. Hyden has been charged with driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and operating a vehicle without a license.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, along with the Chief of Police and the Chief of Fire, held a press conference where they reported that the accident occurred around 10:55 p.m. at the intersection of Water Street and Cherry Street, in southeast Manhattan. “A driver crashed into a crowd of people who were celebrating, as many New Yorkers and Americans are doing right now,” said Mayor Adams. For his part, New York Police Chief Jeffrey Maddrey said that the driver of a gray Ford F-150 pickup truck was traveling at high speed, ran a stop sign at the intersection of Water Street and Cherry Street, went up onto the sidewalk and crashed into Corlears Hook Park, where several people were celebrating Independence Day.
Maddrey also told the media that “the officers who responded to the scene perceived a certain smell of alcohol, but tests are still being carried out.” Authorities suspect that the driver was under the influence of alcohol, but there are no indications of terrorism.
In total, six people were injured, four of whom were trapped under the vehicle. Two people were declared dead on Thursday and a third died in the early hours of July 5. At least one person remains hospitalized in critical condition.
According to CBC News, two of the victims have been identified as Lucille Pinkney, 59, and Hernan Pinkney, 38, who lived near the park. The name of the third victim has not been released. Regarding the injured, Maddrey said police are still working to determine their ages, but confirmed that at least two children were taken to a local hospital. Both were with their mother at Corlears Hook Park at the time of the accident.
The driver, Hyden, was detained by bystanders. “We believe that some individuals at the scene grabbed the driver, held him down and made sure he could not escape until first responders arrived,” the NYPD chief said.
Thousands die in the United States from alcohol-related accidents
According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, 37 people die in drunk driving accidents every day in the United States, or one person every 39 minutes.
Drunk driving remains one of the biggest safety issues in the United States. In 2022 alone, the agency recorded 13,524 people killed in traffic accidents due to drunk driving. And as in the case of this accident on Manhattan’s Lower East Side during the Fourth of July celebrations, all of these deaths could have been prevented.
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