Amaia Rivera, 6, dies in Bohemia crash on Sunrise Highway, police say
The Suffolk County Police Department said a 6-year-old girl died after being ejected from the vehicle her father was driving Saturday on Sunrise Highway. Credit: Barry Sloan
A 6-year-old girl died after being ejected from the vehicle her father was driving as it left Sunrise Highway and struck a tree in Bohemia on Saturday afternoon, Suffolk police said.
Amaia Rivera, of Bay Shore, was in the backseat of the westbound 2012 Infiniti G37 when her father lost control of the vehicle, which crossed all westbound lanes, left the roadway and hit a tree at about 3:35 p.m., police said. She was taken to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip in critical condition, according to police. In an update provided on Sunday morning, police said she had died.
A booster seat was located in the car and the circumstances of the ejection are under investigation, police said.
The police on Sunday did not answer questions about the factors being investigated in the crash, including the speed of the vehicle or whether any criminality is suspected.
The girl's 51-year-old father, Calix Rivera Aguilar, of Brentwood, was not injured in the crash, police said. Police on Sunday night clarified that Amaia Rivera lived in Bay Shore, not Brentwood.
The westbound lanes of Sunrise Highway were closed for nearly four hours from Exit 48 for Smithtown and Locust avenues to Exit 46 at Carleton Avenue in Islip during the rescue and investigation, according to police and state officials.
The Infiniti was impounded for a safety check, police said. Fifth Squad detectives are asking anyone with information about the crash to contact investigators at 631-854-8542.
With Darwin Yanes
More coverage: Long Island traffic crashes claimed 243 lives in 2022, 29% more than in 2019, Newsday has reported. The level was the highest since 2015, as dangerous driving increased post-COVID-19 and police traffic enforcement dropped, according to a Newsday analysis of crash and ticketing data and traffic experts.
Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.
