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On Wednesday, Jan. 16, Kessler, a New Rochelle resident, was driving home from an overnight shift at 1 Police Plaza at approximately 8:20 a.m. when he struck a city Parks Department garbage truck on Shore Road in Pelham Bay.
Kessler, 28, was taken to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, where he was pronounced dead. He is survived by his fiancee, Denise Vargas, of New Rochelle, his parents Kenneth and Nancy (Landolfe) Kessler of New Rochelle and a brother, Timothy Kessler.
Visitation for Kessler will be held from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 22 at The Westchester Funeral Home in Eastchester. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. the following day at the Immaculate Conception Church in Tuckahoe. Interment will follow at Gate of Heaven.
In response, the Tuckahoe Police Department announced that there will be road closures to account for what is expected to be a heavy turnout for the fallen officer.
On Tuesday, Jan. 22, Midland Avenue will be shut down between Winter Hill Road and the funeral home from noon to 9 p.m. The following day, Midland Avenue will be closed between Winter Hill Road and the funeral home; and Winter Hill Road will be closed between Midland Avenue and White Plains Road from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Additionally, there will be no parking on Winter Hill Road from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 23. Police noted that during the next several days, there will also be an increased police presence in the area.
The NYPD officer had been on the job for less than a year and was assigned to the Police Service Area 8 of the Housing Bureau. Two members of the Parks Department in the garbage truck at the time of the crash were treated for minor injuries at the scene.
On Twitter, the NYPD posted, “Today we mourn the death of one of NY’s Finest who passed away after a motor vehicle collision this morning in the Bronx. The officer just got off his shift and was heading home. Our thoughts and condolences go out to his family, friends, and fellow cops.”
In lieu of flowers the family requests donations to NYC PBA Widows and Children's Fund, 125 Broad Street, 11th Floor, NY, NY 10004.
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