East Patchogue, NY - April 20, 2018 - Suffolk County Police arrested a woman for driving while intoxicated following a crash during which two officers rescued her from a burning vehicle in East Patchogue this morning.
Mercedes Ramos was driving a 2016 Nissan Rogue eastbound on Sunrise Highway near Exit 53 when the vehicle crashed into the rear of a 2000 MACK Roll-Off Container Truck, driven by a man, at approximately 4:20 a.m. The front end of the Rogue became stuck under the rear of the truck. The truck dragged the Rogue for approximately one-quarter mile before the driver realized what had happened and brought the truck to a stop on the right shoulder of the roadway. The Rogue caught fire with the woman trapped inside. Two passing motorists, a 37-year-old man from Coplay, Pennsylvania and a 41-year-old man from Ridge, New York stopped to try and free Ramos from the Rogue.
When Highway Patrol Officers Richard Gandolfo and John McCrory arrived at the scene, they joined the two men and extricated the Ramos from the burning vehicle. North Patchogue Fire Department responded and extinguished the fire.
Ramos was transported to Long Island Medical Center in East Patchogue with non-life-threatening injuries. The two officers and the Pennsylvania man were transported to the same hospital where they were treated for minor burns and smoke inhalation and released. The Ridge man and the truck driver were not injured.
Ramos, 19, of Medford was arrested and charged with Driving While Intoxicated. She was issued a Field Appearance Ticket and will be arraigned at a later date.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.