BRENTWOOD, N.Y. (AP) - State police say a trooper who is originally from Western New York is in serious condition after being struck by a vehicle on an overpass leading to the Long Island Expressway near Brentwood.
The trooper, Joseph J. Gallagher, 35. was taken to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore with head injuries. State Police Supt. George Beach says Gallagher underwent surgery.
State police say Trooper Gallagher had stopped to help a motorist who had broken down when the accident occurred. He was setting up emergency flares in the road when he was struck.
The motorist who struck the trooper remained at the scene.
The accident happened mid-afternoon Monday.
Trooper Gallagher is originally from West Seneca. He joined the state police in 2014.
His uncle, William Gallagher of Buffalo, posted in Facebook that his nephew was a rescue helicopter pilot for the Coast Guard in Detroit before he joined the State Police.