A 19-year-old driver hit a median in a Belt Parkway crash that killed two teenage passengers.
Arrivals
A 19-year-old driver hit a median and the sedan overturned on the eastbound Belt Parkway, QNS reported; the official record counts two people killed and one injured in the January 29, 2023, crash.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
QNS reported that police investigators said a 19-year-old driver traveling east at high speed failed to navigate the Belt Parkway and hit a median; the sedan overturned. The official record lists unsafe speed as a contributing factor. Reports differ on the approach and time: ABC7 and the New York Post placed the crash near Farmers Boulevard at about 10:45 p.m., while El Diario described the driver approaching the Belt Parkway from the JFK Expressway near 150th Street at about 11:45 p.m.
Police accounts describe a median impact, but differ on the route.
QNS reported that police investigators said the driver was traveling east at high speed on the Belt Parkway, failed to navigate the roadway and hit a median; the sedan overturned. ABC7 described the driver losing control while traveling east and hitting a divider near Farmers Boulevard. El Diario gave a different approach account: the driver was leaving the airport on the JFK Expressway toward the Belt Parkway near 150th Street, where the driver hit a median and rode along it briefly before the sedan overturned. The official record identifies an eastbound 2011 BMW sedan and lists unsafe speed as a contributing factor.
Reports place the crash near different landmarks and at different times.
The official record places the crash on the Belt Parkway at 11:44 p.m. on January 29, 2023. QNS reported police arrived at about 11:44 p.m. and described the eastbound shoulder near 150th Street. ABC7 and the New York Post placed the crash near Farmers Boulevard at about 10:45 p.m.; El Diario placed it near 150th Street at about 11:45 p.m. ABC7 reported that eastbound lanes east of 150th Street were closed for more than six hours.
Police identified the two passengers.
QNS reported police identified the passengers as Ronish Kush, 16, of New Hyde Park, and Sukhmani Singh, 18, of Bellrose. QNS said Kush was ejected and pronounced dead at the scene; Singh was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. ABC7 reported that all three occupants were friends and were not believed to be related.
Contemporary reports said the investigation remained open.
QNS and ABC7 reported that no arrests had been made and the investigation was ongoing. QNS reported that the 19-year-old driver was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in stable condition.