Inspection Detail

Inspection: 313865560 - Eastern Ny Correctional Facility

Inspection Information - Office: Nys Dol Pesh Albany

Investigation Summary

At approximately 1:35 p.m. on January 28, 2011, two correctional officers from the Eastern NY Correctional Facility were in a state-owned van transporting an inmate to a medical appointment in Albany, NY. As they were at mile marker 94.3 northbound on the New York State Thruway (I-87), they were involved in a motor vehicle accident. A Mercury Sable being driven in the passing lane was reported to have swerved to its right as its driver was trying to adjust the heater in the car. The Sable collided with the state vehicle, causing both vehicles to go off the road and down an embankment. The state-owned van rolled over, while the private vehicle did not. Two employees of the Eastern NY Correctional Facility and an inmate were in the van. At 1:38 p.m., emergency medical technicians from the Diaz Memorial Ambulance Service arrived at the scene. The correctional officer driving the vehicle was pronounced dead at 2:29 p.m. The correctional officer who was a passenger suffered injuries that were not life threatening. He was treated at and released from Kingston City Hospital. The inmate who was being transported to Albany, NY, for the medical appointment was also treated at and released from Kingston City Hospital. The driver of the Mercury Sable and her passenger were treated and released. It is not clear whether the van's driver, who was killed, was wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident. In an interview, one of the emergency medical technicians stated that the driver's body had been moved prior to his arrival. He had no knowledge of the driver's ejection or seat belt use. The initial police accident report issued by a state trooper stated that the van's driver was extricated from the vehicle using the jaws of life. The passenger in the correctional van, when interviewed by this investigator, stated that the driver was ejected from the vehicle. He based this on his recollection of reaching through the front windshield of the van and helping with the dislodging of the driver's feet so that the emergency medical technicians could treat the driver. He stated that he had no knowledge of the driver's seat belt use on that day, but his statement did say that the driver normally wore his seat belt. He had no knowledge of the driver's present or past discipline for a lack of seat belt use when operating a state issued vehicle. The Eastern NY Correctional Facility's acting superintendent told a state investigator that she had no direct or indirect knowledge of the driver's seat belt use. Eastern NY Correctional Facility Directive Number 2932 covers the use of state-owned vehicles. The acting superintendent stated that she was not aware of any discipline resulting from this incident or any past incident. A chief of the Ulster County, NY, Hose Number 5 Volunteer Fire Department, which responded as mutual aid, was interviewed. His incident report and radio communications stated that two occupants were extricated from the van. He stated that he had no direct or indirect knowledge of seat belt use. The emergency medical technician who worked on the driver made a statement. It said that the driver had already been relocated to a place twenty to thirty yards from the state vehicle by parties unknown to him and that CPR was being performed. The technician thus had no direct or indirect knowledge of the driver's seat belt use. The ambulance service's paperwork did not indicate a check box for seat belt use. Toxicology reports were not available. The state trooper making an investigation indicated that his report would state that the driver was not wearing a seat belt.

Keywords: EJECTED, TRAFFIC ACCIDENT, EMERGENCY RESPONSE, ROLL-OVER, WORK RULES, SEAT BELT, SECURITY GUARD, LOST CONTROL, MOTOR VEHICLE, CONTUSION