Impaired Driver Kills Woman, Injures 8 in Long Island Crash: Police

A Long Island man is behind bars Sunday following a fatal crash the previous night that resulted in the death of a 57-year-old woman, police said.

Police in Suffolk County said 27-year-old Christian Lopez was driving while under the influence of drugs in Brentwood when he crashed a chain-reaction crash on Second Avenue around 9:40 p.m. Saturday.

Lopez struck a Toyota Camry, sending the car sideways into a Jeep Wrangler, according to authorities.

A 57-year-old Brentwood woman riding in the front of the Toyota, Soraida Polanco, was transported to a Bay Shore hospital where she was pronounced dead. Her 59-year-old husband driving the car had serious injuries when he was rushed to a hospital. Another passenger riding in the back was also transported.

Five passengers traveling in the Jeep were all taken to nearby hospitals with varying injuries. Among those injured were two boys, 10 and 14 years old. Both are expected to survive.

Lopez himself was injured in the crash. Police said he was treated at South Shore University Hospital before he was taken to the Third Precinct.

Authorities expected Lopez to appear in court on Sunday in Central Islip. Contact information for his lawyer was not immediately known.