A New York City police officer was killed while getting her nails done for a wedding on Friday night when a suspected drunk driver stormed into the salon.
Emilia Rennhack, 30, stopped at Hawaii Nail and Spa in preparation for another police officer’s wedding later that night, when police say Steve Schwally, 64, crashed into the store.
A witness said CBS News They saw the alleged drunk driver behind the wheel swerving while trying to pass other cars on the road where there is a 30 mph speed limit.
He was also allegedly shouting at people from his car before the crash, which left three dead and eight injured.
New York City Police Officer Emilia Rennhack, 30, was killed when a suspected drunk driver crashed into a Long Island nail salon on Friday.
Suffolk County police arrested 64-year-old Steve Schwally on charges of driving while intoxicated.
Friends remembered Rennhack over the weekend as a “generous” woman who had just married fellow journalist Carl Rennhack last September.
“Emilia, I can’t believe you’re gone… you were such a wonderful, sweet young woman,” a friend wrote on Facebook.
“You just got married and you had your whole life ahead of you,” he said, describing the accident as “tragic” and saying Rennhack “didn’t deserve this.”
Her new husband is also in “bad condition,” according to an unnamed police source. told the New York Post, noting: ‘His wife was his life.’
Carl’s mother also said he is “very distraught right now” and described her daughter-in-law as a “wonderful woman.”
“She was beautiful, very kind, very compassionate, very special,” Holly Rennhack said.
Rennhack was remembered over the weekend as a “generous” woman who recently married fellow officer Carl Rennhack.
The two officers were married in a ceremony last September, and Rennhack had been getting her nails done that night for a fellow officer’s wedding.
Several police organizations also expressed grief over Rennhack’s death, with the Police Benevolent Association calling it a “tragic loss.”
“Please join us in praying for her family, friends and coworkers,” she posted on social media, while the Det. Simonsen Foundation — created in the wake of the shooting of Detective Brian Simonsen — noted at a Queens phone store that Rennhack and her husband “were part of our family.”
“The Simonsen Foundation is beyond devastated to learn of the tragic passing of Emilia Rennhack,” the foundation posted on Facebook.
“You could always see them at our events and they always honored Brian,” she continued of the couple.
We will miss Emilia and will NEVER forget her.
‘Carl, we love you beyond measure and we are here for you forever.’
Meanwhile, the NYPD’s Pulaski Foundation said it “gathers in the shadow of the tragedy of losing one of our members, police officer Emilia Rennhack (Kowalczyk), whose sudden departure from this world has left in deep shock and pain.”
‘At times like these, words often fail to capture the depth of our emotions, the enormity of our loss and the acute sense of disbelief that accompanies an unexpected goodbye.’
Several police organizations also expressed grief over Rennhack’s death, with the Police Benevolent Association calling it a “tragic loss.”
Suffolk County police say Schwally crashed into the back of the Long Island salon on Friday, trapping employees and customers inside.
When firefighters arrived, they found four people already dead, including Rennhack, Jiancai Chen, 37, of Bayside, Queens; Yan Xu, 41, of Flushing, Queens; and Meizi Zhang, 50, also of Flushing. WABC reports.
Schwally, the suspected driver, was also found semi-conscious after the crash and was arrested and transported to a local hospital. according to Newsday.
He faces drunken driving charges, but police say they expect those charges to be upgraded.
They noticed Schwally was allegedly driving at high speed through the parking lot of a shopping center in Deer Park when he crashed through the front window of the salon around 4:30 p.m.
Video from the aftermath shows a chaotic scene as first responders descend on the mall, which also contains a liquor store and a Dominican restaurant, while a massive police presence cordoned off the area.
An emergency helicopter landed at the scene to help transport a victim to hospital.
Four people died in Friday’s accident and eight others were injured.
This is not the first time Schwally has been charged with drunk driving, Newsday reports.
In April 2014, he pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol and had his license suspended.
Schwally’s brother Edward also claims he has had more than one prior DUI, telling how he once took his brother to probation after he refused to take a breathalyzer in 2010 or 2011.
“It’s like my worst nightmare has come true,” Edward told the Post.
“I feel really bad that innocent people are getting hurt.”
He also admitted that his brother had a habit of “speaking badly about everyone.”
“He could be cruel at times,” Edward said of his relatives.
“I felt very bad about what happened,” he said. “There’s nothing I can do for him.”
“It is beyond everyone’s reach. It is in the hands of the courts.
“He’s not going to see the light of day,” Edward continued. ‘He has finished. There’s no way out of it.’
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