5 killed in New Year's Day crash on Cross Island Parkway in Queens

The five people killed on New Year's Day in a crash on the Cross Island Parkway in Queens have been identified by the NYPD.

The NYPD said officers responded to a 911 call just before 6 a.m. on Monday at Exit 36N in Whitestone about a collision on the Cross Island involving a Mazda carrying five people and a Honda whose driver was the lone occupant. 

Police said a preliminary investigation indicated that the Mazda was traveling northbound on the Cross Island when it overturned, and was then struck by the Honda. 

The five people in the Mazda were pronounced dead shortly after police responded to the scene. The driver of the Honda was transported to a hospital and was in stable condition, according to police.

The driver of the Mazda was identified as Kazeem Ramsahai, 24, of North Carolina, while the passengers were Mario Ocampo, 30; Dayanara Benitez-Ocampo, 19; Salma Garcia-Diaz, 23; and Jordy Bentances, 20, all of Queens.

The cause of Monday's crash remains under investigation, according to the NYPD.

No arrests have been made. 

The crash happened where the Cross Island connects to the Whitestone Expressway. In 2007, a young man was killed and seven of his friends were injured near the same curve when the drivers of two cars carrying the group home from a night of drinking collided with each other.

With Robert Brodsky