Driver leaves scene after firefighter is fatally hit on FDR Drive
Less Than Three Years
A driver hit off-duty FDNY firefighter Matthew Goicochea after he fell from his motorcycle on the FDR Drive at about 3:48 a.m. on July 24, 2025, and left the scene; Goicochea died.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Police said Matthew Goicochea, 31, fell from his motorcycle while riding north on the FDR Drive early on July 24, 2025. They said a passing driver hit him and left the scene. The official crash record places the fatal crash at 3:48 a.m. Reports differ on whether the later impact was to Goicochea or his motorcycle, and whether he was pronounced dead at the scene or at Bellevue Hospital. Goicochea served with the FDNY's Ladder 41 in the Bronx and received the Thomas Wylie Medal in 2024 for rescuing an unconscious person from a fire. Police were investigating, and no arrests had been reported as of July 25.
The crash and conflicting accounts
Police said Goicochea fell from his motorcycle while riding north on the FDR Drive. ABC7 reported that a passing driver then hit him and left the scene. The FDNY described a collision involving another vehicle, while Gothamist reported that the later impact was to Goicochea's motorcycle rather than to him.
The city crash record documents one motorist death and no other injuries. ABC7 reported that police pronounced Goicochea dead at the scene; Gothamist reported that he was taken to Bellevue Hospital and pronounced dead there.
Where on the FDR Drive
The official record places the crash on the FDR Drive at 3:48 a.m. on July 24, 2025. Reports disagree on the nearby cross street: Gothamist places it near East 25th Street, CBS gives 23rd Street, and ABC7 gives West 25th Street.
Matthew Goicochea's service
Goicochea, 31, was an off-duty firefighter assigned to Ladder 41 in the Bronx. He joined the FDNY in September 2022.
In 2024, the FDNY awarded him the Thomas Wylie Medal for rescuing an unconscious person from a Bronx fire. West Side Spirit reported that he shielded the person from the fire and helped them down the stairs to an ambulance. The person survived.
Investigation and remembrance
The NYPD's Highway Collision Investigation Squad was investigating, and no arrests had been reported as of July 25. CBS reported that police closed the northbound lanes of the FDR Drive near 23rd Street after the crash and reopened them around 7:30 a.m.
Colleagues attend his wake
News 12 reported that FDNY members attended Goicochea's wake at Schuyler Hill Funeral Home in Throgs Neck. Funeral services were planned in Queens.