The driver of a dark blue Ford Econoline van was slowly weaving back and forth, driving west bound along Fifth Avenue near City Park, before it struck a blue Ford Explorer, according to witnesses. The Ford Explorer was thrust forward and struck a parked taco truck sending chorizo and salsa flying inside the vehicle. Teca’s Taco truck is a licensed vendor and long time fixture at City Park.
An onlooker told Talk of the Sound said he noticed the driver was struggling to drive straight as he drove past the baseball field and was already calling 911 just as the collision occurred. The man, who did not wish to be identified, stated that the driver appeared to have suffered some sort of seizure or epileptic fit.
The driver was treated at the scene in the back of an ambulance and then taken to the Emergency Room at Sound Shore Medical center where he was met by his family. The driver of the Ford Explorer and the two men in the Teca’s Taco truck were not injured. New Rochelle police arrived on the scene within 3 minutes, said the man who called 911.
Police officers searched the Ford Econoline van thoroughly and turned up what appeared to be a half-empty pint of whiskey. The bottle and some other items were bagged as evidence and taken away.
No word yet as to whether the pint bottle played any role in the collision.
A note of caution, these sorts of eyewitness accounts are not always entirely accurate. Talk of the Sound has filed a request for the incident report which we should have tomorrow at which time we will publish a more definite account of the sequence of events and the status of the driver.
UPDATE: Police have confirmed it was a medical condition not a DWI.
Developing…