Woman being helped by tow truck killed in Sunrise Highway crash

Wednesday, October 29, 2014
BAY SHORE (WABC) -- Police on Long Island are investigating an accident that killed a woman who had been waiting for assistance from a tow truck Wednesday.

The victim's family understandably didn't want to talk Wednesday night.

Police say the 21-year-old driver was waiting for her car to be towed from Sunrise Highway in Bay Shore, Long Island just after noon on Wednesday.

That's when suddenly the driver of a Chevy Caprice slammed into her sedan, killing Jessica Ortiz from Deer Park.

The driver who hit her, 51-year-old Raymond Reinhardt from West Islip, is in critical but stable condition at Southside Hospital.



The tow truck driver was not hurt.

Longtime residents are stunned.

"It's a shame. It's a real bad shame. This is a dangerous area to be broke down on. It's just a shame. 21 years old. I might now the person. I might know her brother," said Haywood Shelton, a Bay Shore resident.

Police say no criminality was involved, but it is still under investigation.

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