3 People Killed in 2 Long Island Crashes

Three people were killed in separate crashes on Long Island Friday and Saturday, authorities said.

The first crash occurred in Middle Island at 3:50 p.m., according to Suffolk Police.

Giovanni Rivette, 16, of Coram, was driving a 2015 Hyundai Accent northbound on County Road 21 when he ran a "steady red light" and crashed into a 2012 Thomas Built Bus for Rides Unlimited of Nassau and Suffolk that was heading eastbound on Whiskey Road, police said.

Rivette and one of his passengers, Reynaldo Pena, 19, of Coram, were transported to Stony Brook University Hospital where they were pronounced dead. A second passenger in the Accent, Tyrique Copeland, 17, of Coram, was transported to a local hospital with minor injuries.

The driver of the bus, 49-year-old David Ruiz, of Brentwood, was not injured. The bus was occupied by 18 adults and several were transported to local hospitals for precautionary reasons.

Police are asking anyone with information on the crash to call the Seventh Squad at 631-852-8752.

The second crash occurred on the Northern State Parkway in Dix Hills at about 1 p.m. Saturday.

State troopers and the Dix Hills Fire Department responded to the crash on the eastbound portion of the parkway east of Exit 41-Wolf Hill Road.

According to State Police, Thomas Hardy, 22, of East Northport, was driving a 1997 Jeep Cherokee when he lost control of the vehicle. The Jeep exited the roadway onto the center median, where it struck a guide rail and overturned into a tree.

Dix Hills firefighters used heavy rescue extrication tools to remove Hardy and his sole male passenger, who were trapped in the overturned Jeep. Both men were transported to Huntington Hospital by the Dix Hills Rescue Squad. Hardy was later pronounced dead at the hospital. The passenger, who police did not identify, is in stable condition.

State Police are asking anyone who witnessed the crash to call 631-756-3300.

Photos of the Northern State crash by Steve Silverman