By Sadef Ali Kully
An unidentified man and woman, both 29 years old, were struck and killed early morning Thursday by a Long Island Rail Road train in Hollis, police said.
The pair were about 200 feet east of the platform at the Hollis station at 193rd Street and Jamaica Avenue, along the westbound track when they were both hit at about 2:47 a.m., railroad officials said.
It was unclear why the two people, who seemed to be local residents, were on the tracks, but the incident did not appear to be criminal in nature, MTA officials said.
The two people were pronounced dead on the scene by emergency medical services personnel, according to officials.
The train, which was headed to Penn Station from Ronkonkoma was due to arrive at Penn Station at 3:05 a.m. The pair were struck as the train was pulling into the Hollis station.
The train was held at the scene for the investigation, LIRR officials said. There were no other reported injuries and train passengers were transferred to another train, officials said.
The Port Jefferson, Ronkonkoma, Oyster Bay and Hempstead branches experienced 20- to 30-minute delays, and westbound service for Queens Village and Hollis was suspended. Train service was back to normal around 8 a.m., according to LIRR officials.
Reach Reporter Sadef Ali Kully by e-mail at skull
