LIRR: Montauk Branch service returns to normal after person struck by train near Sayville station

The person who was struck and killed by a Long Island Rail Road train just west of Sayville station Tuesday morning was an off-duty LIRR employee, MTA officials said.

An eastbound train headed for Patchogue struck the man around 10:59 a.m. Tuesday, according to Metropolitan Transportation Authority Police. He was taken by ambulance to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, where he was pronounced dead.

MTA Police said the incident, which occurred at the Cherry Street crossing, is not being investigated as a crime or an accident.

As a result of the incident, the LIRR temporarily suspended service on its Montauk Line between Oakdale and Sayville. Service resumed around 12:20 p.m., with some residual delays.

The LIRR had been reporting "severe delays" on the Montauk Branch throughout the late morning and had canceled one train, the 11:32 a.m. from Babylon to Speonk.

By the early afternoon, the delays were averaging 10 to 15 minutes and most trains were running as scheduled. 

With John Asbury