Remembering the loving couple killed in Greenport motorcycle crash

The Southholds, who were killed when their motorcycle collided with a bus in Greenport last Tuesday, only recently buried the woman’s daughter, a 37-year-old quadriplegic who died in Southhold in 2004. paralyzed in a near-fatal crash on County Road 48.

Lorraine Haeg has been carer to her daughter Kim after an accident left the young woman unable to use her limbs. Ms Haig and her partner, Anthony Gallo, have lived together for almost a decade and share caregiving responsibilities.

In the three months since Kim’s death, Ms Haeg and Mr Gallo have struggled to find peace at their Southold home, according to the couple’s shocked friends.

“They had plans to leave,” said Walter Arevalo, who has worked for the couple for the past seven years — mostly carpentry and construction work for Mr. Gallo. “They haven’t felt comfortable in that house since their daughter just passed away.”

Mr. Arevalo – who had been cleaning and waxing Mr. Gallo’s Harley-Davidson and one of his cars last Friday morning – said the motorcycles were the couple’s “escape”.

After King died, he said, Mr. Gallo “began to serve Lorraine more and do construction work less. They would leave together instead of being in the house.”

The couple’s longtime mail carrier was one of many local residents devastated by the loss.

“I see [Ms. Haeg] Weeks after Kim’s death, she told her that she was the angel of her daughter who had kept her alive all these years,” postal worker Chris Turbush wrote in an email. “I told her she now has An angel is watching over her – in her daughter Kim. She used to sit on her porch every day and wave hello when I delivered the mail. “

Mr Turbush said Ms Haeg “was a quiet woman, but after Kim passed away I saw her go further and sit on the back of Anthony’s motorcycle. Smiling with her half helmet [she was] Carefree,” he wrote. “I will miss her waves and smile every day. An absolutely sad day for our Southold community. “

Mr. Turbush signs his emails with “Chris Turbush (her favorite postman)”.

Gallo’s longtime friend, Rich Hokanson, said the couple were planning to move to Florida and had signed on a home there.

“Anthony and Lorraine are looking to buy a house in Florida, Anthony is going to fix it up and they’re going to move there,” Mr Hokanson said on Tuesday. “After Lorraine’s daughter died a few months ago, I guess she was relieved that now she was free,” said Mr Hokanson, who was a full-time carer for his own family, and said he understood the magnitude of the challenge . “The two of them took care of her for years. It’s so sad. Just when you’re at the top of your life, all of a sudden, it’s over.”

Mr Hokanson owns a number of rental properties in Southold which he will hire Mr Gallo to renovate. He said they worked together for many years.

“If he tells you something, he’ll do it,” Mr Hokanson said. “He’s not the type to put you down. If he tells you he’s going to be there at 9, he’ll be there. His pricing and work is always very fair. If there’s something you’re worried about, he’ll be there. Solved, no questions asked.”

Mr Hokanson said he believed Mr Gallo had purchased his motorcycle about five years ago.

“He’s really talking about his car, not his motorcycle,” he said. “They use motorcycles on Sunday or Friday.”

Mr. Gallo’s friend, Kimberly Charity Tortorella, said in an email that his family was “devastated” by the reporter.

“I’ve known Anthony for years and he’s the best guy,” she wrote. “Anyone might be lucky to know him. He always had a smile on his face [and] So caring about his family..whoever knew him adored him..he lights up a room when he walks in. What an amazing person. “

Mr. Arevalo said Mr. Gallo called him last Friday morning and asked if he could come over and wash and wax the couple’s two motorcycles and two pollen-stained cars.

“I went to their house around 9 am, as usual,” he said. After cleaning their motorcycle and one of the cars, they climbed into their white convertible. “They leave around noon [or] 1 p.m. Happy – the two of them holding hands. The car was a convertible and he pulled the roof down and said they were going to the bank and he said to me, ‘I’ll be back, but if I don’t get back in time, I’ll see you tomorrow as usual.’”

Mr Hokanson said the couple were on their way home on their motorcycle when the accident happened on Friday night. Greenport Fire Chief Jim Carlin, a former assistant chief who had worked in the department for 45 years, was one of the first responders to arrive at the scene of the accident.

“What I saw was two people lying under the bus,” he recalled in an interview this week. “From what I can see, the bus is blocking their way when the bikes are pulled over. The bus is turning east on Route 25 from Moore Lane, and the motorcycle is going west. The motorcycle driver starts braking [and] The bike slid under the bus. They are in the middle of the bus. We pulled them out… when we put them in the ambulance they were all still alive. “

Southold Police Chief Martin Flatley declined to comment on the incident, saying his detectives were still investigating and New York State Police had not yet completed reconstruction of the incident. Once those investigations are concluded, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney’s office will review them to determine whether any criminal charges need to be filed.

The bus driver was treated at the scene for minor injuries and was released, according to a police news release.

“We can confirm that a Hampton Gitney coach was involved in a tragic fatal accident on Tuesday night,” Hampton Gitney said in a statement to the Suffolk Times. Condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased. We are working with local authorities and the PTSB [Public Transportation Safety Board] With regard to the accident investigation, it was not possible to comment further on the incident. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration also requires strict drug and alcohol testing protocols for bus drivers involved in fatal collisions.

Founders Tavern waitress Valerie Krause told the Suffolk Times she often waits on Mr Gallo and Ms Haeg.

“They were always so nice, especially Lorraine,” she said. “She was one of those people you just knew had a great heart and an incredible personality — so lovely and friendly.”

Mr. Arevalo, a Guatemalan immigrant, said he considered Mr. Gallo more of a friend than an employer.

“He has always been a very happy man. He always called me his second son because he only had one,” Mr Arevalo said. “When he went out to eat, he’d always invite me to say, ‘Do you want to go somewhere new?’ He’d take me out for steak—because that’s what he liked. And he’d take me to [Greenport seafood restaurant] Billy is by the bay. He and the boss are friends. He sometimes takes me out for lobster even when I’m at work. “

Mr. Gallo is a very considerate man, he added. He never called me Walter because I told him once that my mom only called me Walter when I did something wrong and wanted to yell at me. “

Mr Arevalo said Ms Hager “always had my back”.

“When she met me, she was so happy, said I was her other son, and she told me that coming in was like a second home to me, and I could eat whatever I wanted,” he recalls. “She’d make me a sandwich. She was always very respectful.”

Mr. Arevalo said he has been in touch with Mr. Gallo’s son, Ms. Haig’s ex-husband and other friends of the couple.

Most importantly, Mr. Arevalo said, he has learned a lot about life from working for the kind and colorful Mr. Gallo.

“He was always sending flowers to people he knew,” he said. “He taught me to be there for people when they need them. I learned a lot from him: be punctual, be fair, be honest and always be happy, because getting angry is no use. That was his motto.”