A Long Island cop driving a marked SUV along a stretch of beach struck a sunbather today in Long Beach, authorities said.
The officer was driving near Laurelton Boulevard when he hit the man, Marshall Starkman, 43, who had been sunbathing in a chair, at about 12:30 p.m., according to City Manager Charles Theofan.
Witnesses said Starkman had tire marks along his back.
The chair was low on the ground and may have been obstructed by large mounds of sand.
Starkman was taken to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow.
He remains in stable condition with internal injuries, officials said.
The officer was responding to a call of a surfer in distress. The surfer eventually got out of the water without suffering any injuries.
The accident came on an extremely busy day for Long Beach emergency personnel. With temperatures soaring into the 90’s, swimmers and surfers flocked to the beach just days before the unofficial start of summer this Memorial Day weekend.
About a mile from where Starkman was hit, police were searching the choppy waters looking for a teenager who was swept out.
Cops would not identify the swimmer by name, other than to say he’s 19 and was at the beach with friends.