Community rallies behind Miller Place teen critically injured in Route 25A crash

A GoFundMe launched for a 14-year-old Miller Place boy critically injured in a Route 25A bicycle crash has raised nearly $27,000 in its first 11 hours as classmates, neighbors and school officials rally around the teen and his family.

Andrew Salgado, who plays soccer for Miller Place, suffered multiple broken bones and brain damage Tuesday afternoon when his bicycle struck a turning truck on Route 25A. He remains at Stony Brook University Hospital in critical condition.

On Wednesday morning, a friend of the family launched a GoFundMe to help offset mounting medical costs.

In the fundraiser, the organizer said Andrew faces multiple surgeries and a long road to recovery, and that his family at his bedside. Donations will go toward hospital bills, surgeries and ongoing rehabilitation costs, the fundraiser says.

“We were heartbroken to hear of this accident, and are keeping Andrew in our thoughts for a full recovery,” the post read. “Every donation helps support Andrew & the Salgado family in his recovery.”

As the online fundraiser gained momentum, students and community members gathered at the Miller Place Duck Pond on Wednesday to hang signs along a fence bearing words of encouragement for Andrew.

The crash occurred about 3:20 p.m. Tuesday when Salgado was riding eastbound on the shoulder of Route 25A and struck the passenger-side door of a westbound Ford F-550 XL Super Duty that was turning left into L Delea & Sons Sod Farms.

The driver, Timothy McLaughlin, 58, of Sound Beach, stopped and called 911.

_{Top: Andrew Salgado, 14, of Miller Place (courtesy of GoFundMe)}