By Howard Koplowitz
A tree fell on a car as it was driving through a Little Neck street Sunday, possibly killing one of the two occupants of the vehicle, according to the Breaking News Network.
The car was traveling down 41st Drive between Morgan and Westmoreland streets in Little Neck at around 5 p.m. when the tree toppled over.
A resident of the block said the driver accelerated after the crash and veered into the front lawn of a 41st Drive home, leaving tire marks and destroying plants by the house.
“The kid was in and out of consciousness,” neighbor Helen Clemens said of the driver. She said the driver and another passenger in the car were both Asian, but their names were not known.
A few pieces of clothing were strewn about at the site of the accident and shattered glass littered the street.
The Breaking News Network said one of the men was ejected from the vehicle and the other had to be extricated. It said one of the men was likely to die.
Hard rain fell sporadically Sunday, although skies were clear at the time of the accident.
Herb Doyle, a member of the Westmoreland Association who lives next door to the house where the accident occurred, said he had called the city to complain about the tree prior to the accident.
“We’ve been concerned it would fall down,” he said. “I’ve been talking about this tree for years. 311 is useless. Absolutely useless.”
Doyle said another tree toppled over further down the block last week, smashing the back window and both back passenger windows of a car parked there and the trunk was damaged.
In the last year, Doyle said, four trees in the area have fallen down.
“It’s a shame,” he said of the accident. “I saw the glass. I knew somebody had to get hurt bad.”
Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e-mail at hkoplowitz@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4573.
