NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – A Brooklyn man was arrested after allegedly driving his SUV onto the main line of the Long Island Rail Road tracks in Floral Park, causing damage and service delays, MTA officials announced Monday.
The incident happened at around 4:52 p.m. on Sunday when MTA Police Department officers responded to reports of a black Honda SUV on the Main Line tracks between Bellerose and Floral Park stations.
According to investigators, the driver, Basilio Hidalgo, 40, entered the tracks at grade level west of the Elmont-UBS Arena station. He then drove about half a mile east before the SUV became disabled just east of the Bellerose Station.
The SUV sustained severe front-end damage after two tires were heavily damaged and caught fire. The Floral Park Fire Department extinguished the flames. The incident also caused damage to the third rail and other track infrastructure.
Hidalgo was arrested at the scene and charged with reckless endangerment in the first degree, criminal trespassing in the third degree, and driving while intoxicated.
Services on the Hempstead Branch were suspended and there were significant delays on the Ronkonkoma, Port Jefferson, and Oyster Bay branches as crews worked to investigate, repair the tracks, and remove the vehicle.
Full service was restored on Monday.