Driver arrested after Monsey crash; infant seriously hurt

Show Caption Hide Caption Video: Several people were struck by car on Route 59 The scene where people were struck on Route 59 in Monsey. Route 59 is closed in both directions.

MONSEY - An infant boy in a stroller and his mother and two sisters were seriously injured Monday afternoon when a driver plowed into them as they walked along Route 59 in a crowded shopping area, Ramapo police said.

The 38-year old mother and her three children — two daughters ages 13 and 9 and a 3-month-old son — all ended up hospitalized at Westchester Medical Center, where the boy underwent emergency surgery, Detective Sgt. Brian Corbett said. The boy had been transferred from Nyack Hospital.

The conditions of the family members were not immediately available from police this morning.

The names of the mother and her children were being withheld, Corbett said. They were all first treated at the scene by Hatzolah Ambulance Corps members.

Police arrested the driver, Albert Gomez, 62, of Spring Valley, on two felony counts of second-degree assault; two misdemeanor counts of third-degree assault, four of second-degree reckless endangerment and one of reckless driving.

Gomez was arraigned in Town Court and remanded to the Rockland County jail on $150,000 bail.

Police said Gomez was driving a 1999 Toyota Corolla westbound at 2:47 p.m.near. the Town Square Mall when he struck the family.

Route 59 between Route 306 and Kennedy Drive was closed for several hours in both directions while authorities investigated the crash. The road opened shortly before 7 p.m. to traffic, according to the state Department of Transportation.

The incident remains under investigation and police are asking anyone who may have witnessed the accident to contact them at 845-357-2400.

At the scene of the accident, Rockland County Legislator Aron Wieder, D-Spring Valley, renewed his call for more measures to be taken to enhance pedestrian safety in the area. He called for infrastrutures improvements, including sidwalks and crossings. He said he and other residents have called for the improvements for years.

Wieder also tweeted, "Busiest Rd in Rockland. No sidewalks! Where are our State Representatives?"

Video: Scene where pedestrians were struck in Monsey The scene where four people were struck on Route 59 in Monsey. Route 59 closed in both directions. Carucha L. Meuse/The Journal News

The location where the accident occurred is near the long-shuttered Rockland Drive-In Theatre and a proposed 600-housing unit development.

Hours before the accident, the Ramapo police announced they would be holding another pedestrian decoy program this week as a way to crack down on those who violate the state's pedestrian laws as part of an ongoing effort to increase safety.

During the last decoy program — in which an officer acts as a pedestrian in an intersection, police issued more than 250 warnings to drivers.