10 Worst Accidents to Happen in 2011

If an accident causes a major road closure or fire sirens are heard in Hauppauge,  we do our best to be on the beat to get the story for our readers not long after. Below is a look at some of the worst accidents that occurred in 2011.

* Update: Route 347 Closed after Contractor Cuts Gas Main: Hauppauge drivers found themselves snarled in local traffic after a contractor accidentally cut through a gas main while working on Route 347 this June, shutting down the roadway for more than an hour. 

* : Former Hauppauge teacher Gail Sacher, 62, who remained working as a substitute for the district was killed in a high-speed crash on Sunrise Highway in June. 

* Hauppauge Woman Dies in Smithtown Car Accident: Marlene Strober was killed attempted to make a left-hand turn onto Route 347 from South Plaisted Avenue. This has lead her family to fight for changes to that intersection to protect others.  

* : A pedestrian was struck and killed while attempted to cross Veterans Highway in front of the Marriott Residence Inn in August. 

* Nesconset Man Killed in One-Car Crash: Matthew Warner, 26, was killed in a one-car crash in June when he was driving fast and lost control of his car on Gibbs Pond Road. 

* Teen Hit by Unlicensed Driver on Route 347: Suffolk County police arrested Holtsville resident Jamie Ceron, 37, who was driving allegedly without a license westbound on Route 347, according to police, when he hit Fredi Yanes, 19, of Glen Cove. 

* Police Officer Injured in Vets Highway Crash: A female Suffolk County police officer sustained minor injuries when she attempted to turn from Route 347 left onto Simeon Wood Road in Hauppauge and was hit by an oncoming vehicle. 

* Man Seriously Injured in Crash: Huntington Station resident John Melgar, 29, sustained serious injuries after colliding with a construction truck on Route 347 in September. 

* Trucking Accident Sparks Fire off Old Willets Path: A construction truck backing up outside the old Sears building on Old Willets Path snagged on power lines in September, creating an day-long brush blaze. 

* Car Accident Closes Two Lanes of Route 347: A two-car crash at the intersection of Route 347 and Southern Boulevard in Nesconset closed two lanes of the highway for nearly an hour in July. 

Want to give us a tip in 2012? Email editor Sara Walsh at sara-megan.walsh@patch.com.