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Billy Joel injured in weekend auto accident
Billy Joel was briefly hospitalized over the weekend after the car that he was driving slammed into a tree.
According to published reports, Joel swerved into the tree late Saturday night (1/25) while driving his Mercedes-Benz in eastern Long Island, N.Y. The 53-year-old singer-pianist was not given a Breathalyzer test, and no charges were filed, police told the Associated Press.
Joel was reportedly taken via ambulance to East Hampton Airport, and from there was airlifted to Stony Brook University Hospital. He reportedly arrived at the hospital around midnight and was released around 7:30 a.m.
No additional details about the incident or Joel's condition have been released.
Last summer, Joel voluntarily checked into a substance abuse and psychiatric center in Connecticut. He was later quoted in People magazine as saying that he had begun "what I ultimately realized was a prolonged period of overindulgence. I don't want to get anymore specific."
Joel is scheduled to return to the touring circuit in late February, when he and fellow piano-man Elton John head out on another round of co-headlining dates.
