Suffolk County police officer Patrick Curley died while off-duty in Commack on Friday.

A 17-year veteran of the Suffolk County Police Department was killed early Friday morning when he was involved in a crash with a garbage truck in Commack, Suffolk County police said.

Officer Patrick Curley was off-duty when his SUV collided with a Winters Brothers garbage truck on Jericho Turnpike at 3:30 a.m. near Siracusa Boulevard, police said. The garbage truck was backing out of a business and onto the roadway when the crash occurred, police said.

The 40-year-old Huntington resident was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. The 59-year-old driver of the garbage truck, James Jarosch, was not injured.

Curley worked out of the Second Precinct.

He “had a very good reputation of being a dedicated and reliable officer,” Inspector Edward Brady, commanding officer of the Second Precinct, told the Press. “He was someone who the community and the department could rely upon.”

He added that Curley, who spent his entire career at the same precinct, was also a dedicated family man who enjoyed speaking about his daughter.

“He had great pride in her,” Brady said.

“His passing is going to be a true loss to the Second Precinct,” he added.

Jarosch is a veteran driver who has been employed at Winters Brothers for six years, said Anthony Farina, district manager for the company’s Long Island operation. He has an overall good safety record, Farina noted.

“Our sympathies go out to the family and also our driver and the stuff he’s going to have to deal with right now,” he said.

Winters Brothers will conduct their own investigation into the accident, Farina said.

As part of the police investigation, police impounded the SUV for a safety check and the garbage truck was inspected at the scene, authorities said. Jarosch was issued summonses for unsafe backing and an equipment violation, police said.

The truck, which was manufactured in 2012, was released by police, Farina said.

Jericho Turnpike was closed for several hours between Kings Park Road and Wyandanch Boulevard as detectives investigated the crash. It has now been reopened, police said.

The investigation is continuing, police said. Anyone with information regarding the crash is asked to call Fourth Squad detectives at 631-854-8452 or call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.

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