Edward Johnson, 31, of Deer Park, killed after veering into truck, police say

A Deer Park man was killed Friday morning in Dix Hills when he veered into the opposite lane of traffic and crashed head-on into a tractor trailer, according to Suffolk County police.

Edward Johnson, 31, was declared dead at the scene, the department wrote in a news release.

Commack Road remained closed between Euclid Avenue and Julia Circle for seven hours, reopening at 4:05 p.m., the police press office said by email.

The crash happened around 9:05 a.m. on Commack Road, north of Euclid Avenue, when Johnson, driving a 2005 Mazda northbound, crossed into the southbound lane and hit the tractor trailer, which was being driven by a 60-year-old man from Paterson, New Jersey, the release said; he was treated and discharged from Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip. The collision was head-on, the press office said.

The extent of his injuries wasn't disclosed, nor were other details of the crash.

Last year, 1,021 people were killed in traffic crashes in New York State, 167 of them on Long Island — 62 in Nassau and 105 in Suffolk, according to preliminary statistics from the University at Albany-based Institute for Traffic Safety Management & Research.

By Matthew Chayes

matthew.chayes@newsday.comchayesmatthew

Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.