What Happened
A commercial box truck crashed into a pole in the center median of Sunrise Highway, shutting down all westbound lanes at Exit 50A in Bohemia in the early hours of Sunday morning, August 9, 2026, according to News 12 Long Island.
Suffolk County Police said they received a report of the crash at approximately 5:46 a.m. at Exit 50. Police identified the driver as a 17-year-old male, who was operating the truck with a 20-year-old male passenger aboard. No names or hometowns were released in initial reports.
The Sayville Fire Department, which responded to the scene, reported via social media that upon arrival they found the commercial box truck had struck a pole in the center median of the highway. Fire officials determined that one of the two occupants was trapped inside the vehicle following the collision.
Firefighters freed the trapped victim using an assortment of hydraulic rescue tools, according to the fire department. Both the driver and passenger were subsequently transported to hospitals for treatment. The severity of their injuries was not immediately specified in initial reports.
As of the time of publication, all westbound lanes of Sunrise Highway at Exit 50A remained closed to traffic while the incident was under active investigation, News 12 Long Island reported. The cause of the crash had not been publicly released by police at the time of the initial report, published at 7:04 a.m.
Location & Road Context
The crash occurred on westbound Sunrise Highway (NY-27) at Exit 50A in Bohemia, a hamlet in the Town of Islip in central Suffolk County. Sunrise Highway is one of Long Island’s primary east-west arterials, connecting Queens to the East End, and sees heavy commercial and passenger traffic, particularly on summer weekends when beach and recreational traffic peaks.
According to Long Island Traffic data, Sunrise Highway and NY-27 have accumulated 1,305 recorded incidents in our database. This stretch has seen a notably active stretch of incidents in recent days, including a major crash on August 7 in which a teen was hospitalized after being struck while changing a tire on the highway shoulder, as well as multiple crashes and construction events on NY-27 earlier in the same week.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
The crash remains under investigation by Suffolk County Police, according to News 12 Long Island. No charges had been announced as of the initial report. The fact that the driver is 17 years old — below the legal age for an unrestricted commercial vehicle license — may be a factor investigators examine, though police have not publicly addressed that question at this stage.
Broader Impact
A 17-year-old operating a commercial box truck raises questions about licensing and vehicle authorization that Suffolk County Police will likely address as the investigation progresses. Under New York State law, a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) requires an applicant to be at least 18 for intrastate operation and 21 for interstate routes — the circumstances under which this teen was behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle will be a key line of inquiry. Drivers affected by the westbound closure at Exit 50A should expect significant delays and consider alternate routes via Montauk Highway (NY-27A) or the Long Island Expressway (I-495) until lanes reopen.