Bay Shore Woman Killed in Crash on Sunrise Highway Shoulder, West Islip Man in Critical Condition

Photos by Aj Stiefel

A 21-year-old Bay Shore woman was killed Wednesday afternoon when a car slammed into the back of her vehicle, which was stopped on the shoulder of Sunrise Highway, police said.

According to police, Jessica Ortiz was sitting in her sedan on the right shoulder of westbound Sunrise Highway, west of exit 43, in Bay Shore at about 12:35 p.m. when a Chevrolet Caprice struck the sedan.

The sedan then struck the back of a flatbed tow truck that was stopped in front of Ortiz’s car and had responded to assist her, police said.

Ortiz was transported to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore where she was pronounced dead. The driver of the Caprice, 51-year-old Raymond Reinhardt, of West Islip was transported to Southside, where he was in critical but stable condition, police said. The driver of the tow truck was not injured.