Serious Auto Accident Impedes Christmas Eve Traffic

The Garden City Fire Department received a call for a serious two-car accident with fire at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 24, Christmas Eve. A 2007 Volvo with five occupants operated by a Garden City male was southbound on Oxford Boulevard attempting a left turn onto Stewart Avenue when he collided with a Honda Civic driven by a Franklin Square woman who was heading west on Stewart Avenue.

Three people were injured in the Volvo, one seriously with an injury to the chest which required transport via ambulance to nearby Winthrop Hospital. The driver of the second car, the Honda Civic, suffered a hip injury and was also transported to Winthrop Hospital. 

The Honda Civic was leaking antifreeze and oil; the Volvo was leaking oil. Fire personnel mitigated both spills and cleared debris from the roadway - which had to be shut down for a little over an hour.

This latest call wraps up a busy month for the department, which provided mutual aid to neighboring villages and dealt with a major water main break that caused flooding on 15th Street at Franklin Avenue.

The department sent a ladder truck to standby at New Hyde Park's headquarters Dec. 4. On Dec. 12, firefighters again provided mutual aid to the Hempstead Fire Department, sending a ladder to standby at their headquarters.

On Dec. 13, there was an elevator malfunction with a smoke condition at Adelphi University. The power had to be shut down; firefighters ventilated and metered the area to check carbon monoxide levels.

Also on Dec. 13, firefighters responded to a residential oil burner malfunction with elevated carbon monoxide readings. Residents had to be evacuated while firefighters ventilated.

On Dec. 21, there was a large diameter water main break with flooding on 15th Street at Franklin Avenue. A major drop in water pressure for automatic sprinkler alarms caused numerous fire alarms to activate; all alarms were investigated.

Firefighters also responded to a three-car accident on Stewart Avenue and Butler Place with injuries. Originally dispatched as a possible entrapment, firefighters on arrival however found no trapped occupants in any of the three vehicles involved. They assisted victims and mitigated any road spills.