An East Hampton Village police sergeant one day away from retirement was injured last week in an accident on school grounds.
Sgt. Matthew Kochanasz was on a police motorcycle at the John M. Marshall Elementary School on the morning of Sept. 9 when it was struck by a Chevrolet Suburban. The car’s driver, Katherine L. Helm of East Hampton, told police she’d missed her turn and had been reversing when it happened. Sergeant Kochanasz, who was stopped at the time, was knocked off the motorcycle and fell to the ground.
He was taken by ambulance to Stony Brook’s East Hampton emergency room, where he was treated for facial lacerations. According to Detective Sgt. Jennifer Dunn of the department, he retired the next day.
Ms. Helm was issued a citation for backing up unsafely.
Falling Lumber
Later that day, on Route 114, lumber fell from a southbound Riverhead Building Supply truck into the path of a northbound pickup truck driven by Shawn Rea of East Hampton. The truck struck the debris, damaging its driver’s side and forcing Mr. Rea off the road. Police said he complained of back pain and was taken by ambulance to Stony Brook Southampton Hospital.
The driver of the lumber truck, Dennis Ruiz, was not hurt, and his vehicle was undamaged, but the pickup truck was towed from the scene.
Yet another Sept. 9 accident involved a bicyclist, who was injured that afternoon on Amagansett’s Main Street.
There was some confusion at the scene as to who was at fault, police reported. Finn W. Li, 26, the cyclist, told police that a work van driven by Martin Albanese Jr. had made a U-turn onto Conklin Lane, and in trying to avoid the van, his bike struck its passenger-side mirror and then a light pole.
However, both a witness and Mr. Albanese told police he was making a right turn onto the lane, not a U-turn. In the end, police said it was likely a combination of Mr. Albanese failing to yield to the bicyclist’s right of way and some error on Mr. Li’s part that caused the accident. No one was ticketed.
Mr. Li, of Amagansett, suffered injuries to his arm and was taken by ambulance to Stony Brook Southampton Hospital. His bicycle sustained damage to the frame and handlebars.