Trooper Injured When Tractor Trailer Doesn't Move Over [PHOTOS]

KINGSTON, NY — A state trooper's vehicle was struck by a tractor trailer March 13 on the northbound side of I-87 in the City of Kingston. State police said the incident occurred around 3 p.m. when the trooper's patrol car was assisting a disabled vehicle.

Trooper Thomas P. Hanigan was inside his vehicle when a tractor trailer did not yield the right of way to an emergency vehicle and struck the driver's side of the trooper car.

The truck driver — Michael Audit, 54, of Napierville, Quebec — continued north and struck the driver's side of the disabled vehicle, a 2003 Chevy Tahoe, while both occupants were attempting to change a tire.

The tractor trailer then struck the guide rail and crossed over the northbound lanes, coming to rest on the westbound shoulder.

The passenger of the Tahoe, Juana Herrera, 46, of Albany, was injured when the vehicle struck her and pushed her into the guide rail. The driver, Alejandro Espinosa, 56, of Albany, was able to jump over the guard rail and was not injured.

Herrera and Trooper Hanigan, a 19-year veteran assigned to the Kingston barracks, were taken to Kingston Hospital for non-life threatening injuries and were treated and released.

Audit was not injured and was ticketed for moving from lane unsafely and for violating the move over law, police said.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation also responded to the scene for spill response, because of fuel leaking into the Esopus Creek.

Get Mid-Hudson Valley Patch’s daily newsletters and news alerts right in your inbox. Find and “Like” Hudson Valley Patches' Facebook Pages.