Motorcyclist Listed In Critical Condition Following Accident

By Andrew Gorosko

A local man was reported in critical condition midday Wednesday in Danbury Hospital following a Saturday,  April 1, accident in which the motorcycle he was driving collided with an automobile on Church Hill Road.

Motorcyclist Peter Sturges, 53, of 3 Underhill Road, in the Riverside section of Sandy Hook, was a patient in the hospital’s intensive care unit, a hospital spokeswoman said.  

Police said the accident occurred about 11:10 am on April 1 near 30 Church Hill Road.

Sturges, who was driving a 1992 Harley-Davidson, was attempting to exit the parking lot at 30 Church Hill Road and turn left to go westward on Church Hill Road, as motorist James Tani, 33, of 11 Bungalow Terrace was driving a 1999 Hyundai sedan eastward on Church Hill Road, police said.

The two vehicles collided in the road’s eastbound lane.

Due to the impact, Sturges was thrown from the motorcycle. The motorcycle then slid into a rear fender of a 2004 Mazda sedan driven by Christie Zingoni, 18, of 3 Saddle Ridge Road, which was pulling out of the driveway at 32 Church Hill Road to turn left to go westward on Church Hill Road, police said.

Sturges was not wearing a helmet when the accident occurred, police said. The Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps transported Sturges and Tani to Danbury Hospital. Tani was treated and later released, police said. A 5-year-old passenger in the Hyundai was not injured, police said. Zingoni was not injured.

Newtown Hook & Ladder firefighters went to the accident.

The police department’s accident reconstruction team spent about two hours at the scene investigating the crash.

Alternating one-way traffic flowed through the area as the investigation proceeded. The accident remains under investigation, police said.