Man in wheelchair, 2nd man hit by minivan

A man in a wheelchair and the man who was pushing him were hit by a minivan on Locust Avenue in Oakdale on Friday night, Suffolk police said.

A Toyota Sienna hit the pair around 6:31 p.m., a spokeswoman said.

The man pushing the wheelchair was unconscious, not breathing and had a brain injury, according to the Community Ambulance Company, a Sayville-based volunteer firm that treated the victims at the scene. The pedestrian, who is in his 40s, was airlifted to Stony Brook University Medical Center, where he was in serious condition, authorities said.

His companion, who is in his 70s, complained of back pain and also had some head injuries, said James MacDonell, spokesman for the ambulance company. He was taken by ambulance to Southside Hospital, where he was treated and released, police said.

Police did not give the names of anyone involved in the incident and were still investigating Friday night. No charges have been filed, police said.

Neighbor John Menniti Jr., said he was listening to music in his home when the sound of the collision prompted him to go outside.

"I heard a bang, I looked . . . and didn't see anything," he said. "It's dark out there."

But he went further down the street, he said, and saw a car on the side of the street, with its bumper and other debris on the road, and what turned out to be a wheelchair in the middle of the road.

By then police had arrived, Menniti said, as neighbors and other drivers gathered in the roadway.

He said Locust Avenue has no sidewalks and streetlights at the accident site.