Police: 2 women killed in separate hit-and-run crashes overnight in Suffolk County
WEST ISLIP, N.Y. -- Police are investigating two separate hit-and-run crashes on Long Island that took the lives of two young women.
Both happened Monday night -- one in Hauppauge and the other in West Islip.
CBS2's Jennifer McLogan spoke with grieving family members of the victims on Tuesday.
Steven Bartolomey shed tears for his fiance, 28-year-old Cherokee Fletcher.
"She was my soulmate. She was my everything," Bartolomey said.
He described Fletcher, the mother of their five children, as the love of his life.
Walking on the sidewalk to a 7-Eleven to get some cash for their eldest child's school field trip, Fletcher was mowed down in Hauppauge by a driver who slammed into another car, jumped the curb, and fled the scene on Motor Parkway.
"Why, why couldn't you just take responsibility for your actions? You left five beautiful children motherless and a lonely man," Bartolomey said.
Fifteen minutes later Monday night there was yet another fatal hit-and-run, 14 miles away in West Islip.
Tracey Dorismond, 32, was struck crossing Montauk Highway at around 10:30 p.m. in front of Good Samaritan Hospital. The vehicle's driver never stopped.
Dorismond lived with her family in Brentwood. Fletcher and her family resided in an area shelter.
"We always tried to make the best for the kids, best for each other. They are devastated mommy is not going to be around for Christmas this year," Bartolomey said.
Between 2010 and 2020, pedestrian deaths increased an astonishing 54 percent, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The problems is particularly severe in Suffolk County, because it is both rural and at times exceedingly congested.
"It still feels like a nightmare I am waking up from," Bartolomey said.
Both tragedies are under investigation. Families and police are urging anyone with information to come forward.