Cops: Wyandanch woman charged with DWI had kids in car

A Wyandanch woman who drove with a missing tire -- and two frightened children in the car -- is facing drunken driving and child-endangerment charges, Suffolk police said Saturday.

Mary Kimbrough, 64, was heading north on Commack Road near Motor Parkway in Commack about 9 p.m. Friday when a Fourth Precinct patrol sergeant heard a loud noise coming from the woman's 2004 Honda, police said.

The sergeant pulled Kimbrough over and discovered her left front tire was missing and that she'd been driving on the metal rim "for some distance," according to police.

Kimbrough told police she was taking her 11-year-old granddaughter and the girl's 9-year-old cousin to get their nails done, Det. Sgt. John Twiname said.

The kids were scared and had used a cellphone to call relatives for help before the vehicle was stopped, according to police.

Police arrested Kimbrough on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and turned the children over to a relative.

Kimbrough also was charged with one count of endangering the welfare of a child and aggravated driving while intoxicated with a child passenger 15 years old or younger.

She was arraigned Saturday at First District Court in Central Islip.

Kimbrough was convicted of DWI in 2009, police said.