Date: Fri 23-Apr-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

fatality-South-Main-St

Full Text:

Main Street Crash Kills Roxbury Man

(with photo)

A Roxbury man was killed as a result of injuries he suffered the evening of

April 16 in a three-vehicle accident on South Main Street near Orchard Hill

Road, police said.

Arsian Ertugrul, 28, of 41 Holmes Road, Roxbury, was identified as the victim

by police.

Police said Mr Ertugrul was driving a 1988 Chevrolet Cavalier northbound on

South Main Street, just south of its intersection with Orchard Hill Road,

about 6:20 pm when he failed to negotiate a slight curve to the right and

drifted over the center line of the road into the southbound lane.

Southbound motorist Marc Berardino, 43, of New Hartford, N.Y., who was driving

a 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee, saw the Chevrolet cross into the southbound lane

and attempted to evade it by steering to the right, but was struck head on by

the Chevrolet, police said.

Southbound motorist David J. Orticelli, 36, of Trumbull, who was driving a

1990 Volvo 744 behind the Jeep, saw the accident unfolding and attempted to

evade it, but struck the Jeep and then struck the Chevrolet, police said.

All three vehicles came to rest in the southbound lane.

Emergency medical personnel performed lifesaving techniques on Mr Ertugrul at

the scene, but he later died at Danbury Hospital, police said. Mr Ertugrul,

who was not wearing a seat belt, suffered extensive chest injuries in the

accident, police said.

Mr Berardino and a passenger in the Jeep, Kristin Dempsey, of Rome, N.Y.,

reported pain, but were not transported to the hospital.

South Main Street was closed to traffic until 11 pm for a police investigation

of the accident.

Police report that a second accident occurred in traffic backed up behind the

fatal crash.

Motorist Mary Ventresca, 53, of Monroe, who was driving a 1994 Toyota Camry

northbound on South Main Street near Ethan Allen Road about 6:45 pm, came to a

stop in heavy traffic, police said.

Ms Ventresca then decided to turn left into a driveway to turn around.

Northbound motorist Lynn Ceccarelli, 50, of 15 Sherman Street, Sandy Hook, who

was driving a 1991 Toyota 4-Runner, was behind the Toyota. Ms Ceccarelli is a

Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps member who was responding to the

three-vehicle crash, police said.

As Ms Ventresca started to turn left into the driveway, Ms Ceccarelli started

to drive northbound in the closed southbound lane to get to the accident and

the two vehicles collided, police said. There were no injuries.

Police verbally warned Ms Ceccarelli for passing in a no-passing zone.