Pedestrian struck and killed crossing Montauk Highway in Water Mill, police say
A pedestrian was struck and killed crossing Montauk Highway in Water Mill late Saturday night, Southampton Town police said.
The pedestrian, whose identity was not immediately released Sunday by police, was crossing at the Scuttle Hole Road intersection about 11 p.m. Saturday. A 2019 Nissan sedan driven by Spencer Cannon, 28, of Southampton, then struck the victim as the car headed east on Montauk Highway, police said.
The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene, police said in a news release.
Cannon was not injured, police said. His vehicle was impounded for a safety check, but no criminality is suspected, according to police.
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call the Southampton Town Police Detectives Bureau at 631-702-2230.
The fatal crash comes after a deadly August on Long Island roadways, where at least 30 motor vehicle-related fatalities were reported in Suffolk and Nassau counties, according to information released by local police departments.
From 2020 through 2022, Long Island averaged 18.2 roadway fatalities per month, according to the most recent data available from the Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research. The total number of fatalities on Long Island roads increased each year from 2019 to 2022, the agency reported.
A Newsday analysis in 2021 found that Long Island roads were among New York State's deadliest to walk and bike, but few drivers involved in crashes that killed pedestrians and bicyclists faced criminal charges.
There were 74,683 crashes on Long Island in 2022 — 35,748 in Suffolk and 38,935 in Nassau, according to preliminary statistics maintained by the University at Albany-based traffic safety institute. In those crashes, 154 were killed and 13,533 injured in Suffolk and 80 were killed and 14,514 injured in Nassau.
Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.
