FDNY Pickup Driver Killed E-Bike Rider in Park Slope
At Fourth Avenue and Sackett Street in Brooklyn, a 44-year-old FDNY pickup driver responding to a choking-baby emergency hit 24-year-old e-bike rider Victor Hidalgo on Oct. 30, 2024; the official record lists one cyclist killed there.
What We Know
Victor Hidalgo, a 24-year-old Bronx resident, was riding east on Sackett Street on the evening of Oct. 30, 2024, when a 44-year-old FDNY pickup driver headed north on Fourth Avenue hit him at the intersection. The official record places the crash at 8:11 p.m.; news reports citing police described it as about 8:15 p.m. FDNY officials said the driver was responding to a 911 call about a choking baby and had emergency lights on. Paramedics took Hidalgo to NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The official record lists one cyclist killed and one motorist injured and records a pickup, an e-bike and a parked SUV. Police and FDNY officials said the driver stayed at the scene, no charges were immediately filed, and the cause was under investigation.
A response call ended in a fatal intersection crash
The official record places the crash at 8:11 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2024, at Fourth Avenue and Sackett Street in Brooklyn; news reports citing police described the time as about 8:15 p.m. Victor Hidalgo, 24, was riding east on Sackett Street when a 44-year-old FDNY pickup driver, heading north on Fourth Avenue and responding to a choking-baby call with emergency lights activated, hit him at the intersection.
Hidalgo was thrown from the bike. Paramedics took him to NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Fourth Avenue and Sackett Street
The crash happened in Park Slope at Fourth Avenue and Sackett Street, in Brooklyn ZIP code 11217. The official record gives the location at the intersection, and multiple news accounts identified the same corner.
Brooklyn Paper reported that Sackett Street has a painted bike lane that overlaps with the motor-vehicle lane and lacks physical separation. The outlet also cited city transportation data showing dozens of cyclist injuries on Fourth Avenue in 2024 and another cyclist death involving a pickup driver on Fourth Avenue earlier that year.
Victor Hidalgo was identified as the cyclist killed
Police identified the cyclist as Victor Hidalgo, 24, of the Bronx. Brooklyn Paper reported, citing Streetsblog, that Hidalgo worked as a delivery worker and had a wife and 1-year-old son living in Mexico.
Officials reported no immediate charges
Police said the 44-year-old driver stopped and stayed at the scene. Daily News and News 12 reported that no charges had been filed by the next day.
Brooklyn Paper reported that it was not immediately clear whether the driver had also activated a siren or had a green light. FDNY officials said other units handled the choking-baby call, and News 12 reported that the cause of the crash remained under investigation.