A 27-year-old off-duty paramedic was killed Thursday when her motorcycle struck the rear of a double-parked truck and burst into flames in Brooklyn, police said.
The paramedic, assigned to Maimonides Medical Center, was riding northbound on Bay 35th Street in Bath Beach when she struck an empty truck that was double-parked and unoccupied, causing the bike to burst into flames around 11:30 a.m., police said.
Police have identified her as Christina Gardini, 27, of 46 Bay 37 Street.
When rescuers arrived, they found the bike in flames and Gardini, who suffered burns and other severe injuries, sprawled on the pavement. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Fellow EMT’s and paramedics began gathering at the scene after the crash and it was determined that she was a paramedic. After an initial examination by the Medical Examiner, a long line of Maimonides Medical Center ambulance workers lined up and saluted her as an ambulance drove her away.
It was unclear at this time what the truck was doing parked on Bay 35th Street, but police say he was a private contractor. It was not clear at this time if the truck would be receiving any summonses, or why the woman hit the truck in the first place.
