Crime & Safety
State Police: Wrong-Way Driver with Dementia Makes 8-Mile Trek on Thruway
State Trooper John Devoe stopped traffic in the town of Tuxedo on Orange County and took the driver into custody.
New York State Police out of Tarrytown Barracks stopped a wrong-way driver on I-87 in Monday afternoon.
The driver, an 86-year-old dementia patient who had been reported missing by Ramapo Police, made it eight miles up the Thruway before being stopped. No one was injured.
New York State Police Troop T Communications received a report from New Jersey State Police at approximately 2:45 p.m. that a blue Toyota Camry was headed northbound in the southbound lane near Thruway Exit 15 in Ramapo. Because the situation was so dangerous, a "red flash" was called, focusing radio communication and informing patrols of the situation. State Police and the Thruway Authority shut down southbound traffic at the Harriman and Woodbury toll plazas to minimize the danger.
The wrong-way driver nearly struck a state trooper's vehicle near the Sloatsburg service area even though he had his emergency lights flashing and his siren on.
State Trooper John Devoe stopped traffic in the town of Tuxedo on Orange County and took the driver into custody. The driver was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern for evaluation; Devoe is being dubbed a hero.
Video from CBS News above.
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