FDNY Pickup Driver Kills E-Bike Rider in Park Slope
At about 8:11 p.m. on Oct. 30, an FDNY pickup driver responding to a baby-choking call hit e-bike rider Victor Hidalgo, 24, at Fourth Avenue and Sackett Street, and Hidalgo died at a hospital.
What We Know
At 8:11 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2024, the city crash record logged a fatal crash involving a pick-up truck and an e-bike at 4th Avenue and Sackett Street in Brooklyn. Police and FDNY accounts identified the rider as Victor Hidalgo, 24, of the Bronx, and said an FDNY driver was responding to a 911 call for a baby choking when the driver hit him. Reports described the FDNY unit as an EMS vehicle and a pickup truck; the official record classifies it as a pickup truck. FDNY officials said the driver had emergency lights on, while Brooklyn Paper reported it was not immediately clear whether a siren was activated or whether the driver had a green light. Hidalgo was taken to NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital and died there. The driver stayed at the scene, and no charges were immediately filed.
The crash happened during an emergency response
The city crash record places the collision at 4th Avenue and Sackett Street in Brooklyn at 8:11 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2024, involving a pick-up truck and an e-bike. Press accounts said Victor Hidalgo, 24, was riding east on Sackett Street as an FDNY driver headed north on Fourth Avenue while responding to an emergency call.
FDNY officials told reporters the call was for a baby choking and that the driver's emergency lights were on. Brooklyn Paper reported that it was not immediately clear whether the siren was activated or whether the driver had a green light.
Victor Hidalgo was riding the e-bike
Police identified the rider as Victor Hidalgo, 24, of the Bronx. Paramedics took him to NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Brooklyn Paper, citing Streetsblog, reported that Hidalgo was a delivery worker and that his wife and 1-year-old son lived in his native Mexico.
The FDNY unit was described in different ways
News reports described the FDNY unit as an EMS vehicle and as a pickup truck; the official crash record classifies the involved motor vehicle as a pick-up truck and lists damage to its front-right area. The record also lists Hidalgo's e-bike traveling east and a parked Jeep SUV.
Warning signals and right of way remained public questions
FDNY officials said the driver had emergency lights flashing as he crossed the intersection. Brooklyn Paper reported that officials had not immediately said whether a siren was also on or whether the driver had the green light.
Fourth Avenue has a long crash record
The crash happened at 4th Avenue and Sackett Street in Park Slope, where Sackett Street crosses the north-south avenue. Brooklyn Paper reported that Sackett Street has a painted bike lane that shares space with vehicle traffic and has no physical separation.
CrashCountNYC's Fourth Avenue corridor context counted 2,076 crashes, 1,379 injuries, 78 serious injuries and 10 deaths on Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn from Jan. 1, 2022, through June 1, 2026.
The driver stayed, and other units handled the call
The 44-year-old FDNY driver remained at the scene, according to press accounts. Daily News reported that no charges were immediately filed, and FDNY officials said other units handled the baby-choking emergency.