69.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Steam-rolled in Lynbrook
Rush hour traffic was snarled for hours in Lynbrook on July 19 when a steamroller fell from a flatbed truck underneath the LIRR trestle on Sunrise Highway just east of Atlantic Avenue, backing up traffic all the way back to Green Acres in Valley Stream.
The steamroller, which was on the flatbed along with an asphalt spreader, somehow fell from the truck and hit one of the columns supporting the train trestle.
The roadway had to be closed for more than two hours while the steamroller, which was lying on its side, was righted and removed.
According to Lynbrook Fire Department spokesman Steve Grogan, the Lynbrook Fire Department was notified of the accident at 3:45 PM. Captain Kyle Overs, in charge of the department, and who was then at the scene of a medical emergency, ordered a general alarm response. The fire department responded to the scene and found the overturned steamroller, which was leaking fluids.
Captain John Donald who took over operations at the scene ordered a response by the Nassau County Fire Marshal’s Hazmat Unit. Most of the fire companies were released but two units stayed and spread absorbent material for the leaking fluids. The remaining fire units were released at 5:45 p.m. when the steamroller was righted and removed with the use of a heavy-duty tow truck.
When the steamroller fell from the truck it took out a chunk of concrete from the roadway and also took off a piece of concrete from the cement covering one of the steel columns holding up the train trestle. The structure however, remained sound, according to firefighters at the scene.
