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What Happened
A Mastic road worker was killed and two of his colleagues were injured Monday on Townline Road in Nesconset after a Lake Ronkonkoma man allegedly drove the wrong way into a construction crew that was setting up for a paving job — and by Tuesday, the community was rallying around the deceased worker’s family while the accused driver stood before a judge pleading not guilty.
The deceased worker, 38, of Mastic, was pronounced dead at Stony Brook University Hospital after the Monday crash. According to Greater Long Island, he and two coworkers were struck by a vehicle that was traveling east in the westbound lane of Townline Road. The driver — identified as Thomas Lobianco, 26, of Lake Ronkonkoma — allegedly ran a red light, drove onto the sidewalk, and struck all three workers before his car collided with an electronic crossing sign, a utility pole, and finally plowed through a vinyl fence.
The two surviving workers were also members of Laborers Local 1298: a 30-year-old man from Bay Shore and a 33-year-old man from Brentwood. All three men were employed by East Moriches-based contractor Rosemar at the time of the crash, per reporting from Greater Long Island. The crew had been preparing for a paving job on Townline Road when they were struck.
Police say Lobianco had just finished an overnight shift at a nearby 7-Eleven. He reportedly sat in his vehicle for roughly 20 minutes before driving away. Investigators allege he was impaired by drugs at the time he entered the wrong side of the road. Greater Long Island first reported the sequence of events leading up to the collision, including the red-light violation, the excursion onto the sidewalk, and the chain of secondary impacts.
On Tuesday — the day after the deadly crash — the community began organizing financial support for the deceased worker’s family. A GoFundMe campaign was launched for his wife and their three children. The organizer wrote that all donations would go directly toward funeral expenses and ongoing care for the three children.
Location & Road Context
The crash took place on Townline Road in Nesconset, a heavily traveled corridor in central Suffolk County that borders multiple communities and is regularly used by construction and utility crews. The road crew had been staged for a paving operation — a routine job made fatal by the wrong-way approach of Lobianco’s vehicle. Townline Road is a two-lane road with directional lanes separated by painted markings; there are no physical barriers to prevent a vehicle from crossing into oncoming traffic.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
Thomas Lobianco, 26, of Lake Ronkonkoma, appeared Tuesday at Suffolk First District Court in Central Islip, where he entered a not guilty plea to a charge of driving while ability impaired by drugs (DWAI). The arraignment came the day after Suffolk County police charged him in connection with the crash that killed the Mastic worker and injured his two coworkers, as Greater Long Island reported.
The court set bail at $200,000 cash, $400,000 insured bond, or $2,000,000 partially secured surety bond. The investigation remains active. Lobianco’s alleged conduct — driving in the wrong direction, running a red light, and mounting a sidewalk before striking three workers — will likely form the foundation of any additional charges prosecutors may pursue as the case proceeds.