UDPATE 7:45 p.m. - County Road 39 is being reopened to traffic.
UPDATE - County Road 39 is still closed as of 7 p.m. between Hill Station Road and Exit 66. Eastbound traffic is being detoured around the accident then getting back on Sunrise Highway.
Previously:
County Road 39 in Southampton is currently closed in both directions between Hill Station Road and Exit 66 after an accident near the Lobster Grille Tuesday afternoon.
Traffic is being diverted to Montauk Highway, which is also backed up.
Area resident Steve Cohen said that he could hear sirens for more than 20 minutes, and when we went outside to investigate he saw that a red dump truck and a white vehicle — either a station wagon or SUV — had a bad accident and the highway was closed.
“The front left wheel of the dump truck was mangled, so it looked like it was a sideswipe, or the vehicle went into the dump truck,” Cohen said.
spokesman Capt. Chris Brenner said that firefighters used heavy rescue tools to extricate a victim from the white vehicle, who was then taken to an awaiting ambulance and eventually airlifted.
The medevac helecopter landed right on County Road 39, Brenner said.
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There are 2 main roads that people can use to get on and off the South Fork. When the larger of those 2 roads shut down for hours as it was today, there will be chaos. There is no getting around it. There aren't enough police to be on every road at the same time, and there are idiot drivers anywhere. You live on an island. If an evacuation is needed, guess what? It's not going to happen! Too many people trying to go in the same direction at the same time will overwhelm every road on Long Island. Common sense should tell you that. !5 years, one really long commute....if you ask me, that's a pretty damn good percentage.
I'm guessing the road was closed because the Police Departments were treating the accident as the scene of a fatality (a rumor at this point, yet to be confirmed), which causes the long delay. Is it possible that you could interview a member of the Police Department and have him explain what has to be done during this type of accident scene investigation and why it takes so long?
Please, for the love of God, shut up!
For sure the speeds are no where near the 35mph posted limit. I've seen even police cars going faster than that with no lights/sirens or obvious emergency....just going with the flow of the traffic. I know CtyRd39 is an evacuation route and pretty much the main artery to getting out in dire emergency but thank goodness for options like boats and planes (support your local airports people), too. Can you imagine what it'd be like without options? On a good day the roads are just awful. Walbaums and that horrible parking lot needs to be raised and something descent put in its place....even a full time farmers market would be nice. It's the only reason I support a KK or anything other than Walbaums or having to drive to Bridgehampton or Hampton Bays.