New York – Police in New York City say a 51-year-old hairstylist was severely injured by a hit-and-run driver after he fainted on his cigarette break and fell into oncoming traffic.
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Luis Melendez was struck by a black Ford Econoline conversion van around 11:30 a.m. Monday after he fell onto the street in front of the West 35th Street salon where he worked.
Witnesses say Melendez was having a cigarette with a customer when he became dizzy and passed out. The barber was rushed to Bellevue Hospital in critical condition.
Melendez’s wife tells WNBC-TV that her husband will have to undergo reconstructive surgery after breaking every bone in his face.
Police are asking for the public’s help in locating the driver of the van.
The NYPD has found the van. I saw it on a Police flatbed last night being escorted by two patrol cars down ocean parkway