Official: Man killed by LIRR train on Ronkonkoma line

A man was hit and killed Friday morning by a Long Island Rail Road train west of the Deer Park station, a spokesman for the commuter service said.

The 7:32 a.m. westbound train from Ronkonkoma hit the man, described only as being in his 40s, at about 7:50 a.m. at the Carlls Straight Path crossing, said Aaron Donovan, an LIRR spokesman.

The man was not authorized to be on the tracks, Donovan said.

The train that hit the man was held at the site of the incident before being released by Metropolitan Transportation Authority police at about 9:15 a.m., Donovan said.

Donovan said he had no other details.

The LIRR said at about 8:30 a.m. that service on the Ronkonkoma branch had been suspended in both directions because of the incident.

Eastbound service resumed at 9:15 a.m. with a train from Penn Station due in Ronkonkoma at 10:37 a.m., the first to go all the way through the line, the LIRR said.

That train was expected to be delayed at Hicksville at 9:59 a.m., when it was scheduled to be held until the police completed their investigation.

Westbound service was restored shortly after, the LIRR said, when an additional train left Ronkonkoma at 10:04 a.m. The first scheduled westbound train to leave Ronkonkoma was scheduled for 10:11 a.m., due into Penn at 11:32 a.m.

Donovan said that five westbound trains had been canceled, as well as two eastbound trains that were already into their runs.

Police had closed Long Island Avenue at the tracks during the investigation, but it was reopened just before 10 a.m.

The incident is not related to earlier delays on the Ronkonkoma branch caused by a broken rail in Bethpage, Donovan said.

There were cancellations and delays of up to 15 minutes between about 5 a.m. and about 6:30 a.m. before the rail was temporarily repaired.

With Kery Murakami