6 injured in multivehicle crash on Long Island Expressway, officials say

Six people were injured, two seriously, in a multivehicle crash on the Long Island Expressway near Syosset Wednesday, police said.

A box truck driver lost control after rear-ending a tractor trailer, police said. Two more box trucks and two sedans were involved in the collisions, a Nassau police spokesman said.

The last two of the westbound lanes by Exit 44 were reopened, the police said in a 4:30 p.m. release. All four had been closed after the 9:08 a.m. accident until about 2:30 p.m.

Vehicles had been diverted to the service road, causing long backups. Just before 1 p.m., traffic remained backed up nearly to the interchange with Route 110 in Melville, according to a state Department of Transportation website.

Some fluid, which the police spokesman could not immediately identify, was spilled onto the pavement. If it was gasoline or another fuel, it would be considered hazardous.