Cobbler, 80, dies under bus wheels
A MANHATTAN bicyclist died Saturday after he was crushed under the wheels of a charter bus, police said.
Michael Mamoukakis, 80, was pedaling south on 7th Ave. in Chelsea when he was hit by a bus as it turned right on W. 29th St., around 1:30 p.m., cops said.
One witness, who gave his name as Garrett, said he heard Mamoukakis let out a chilling scream before the crash. “I turned around and I saw bus wheels go over a man’s body,” he said. “It was horrible.”
The 56-year-old raced to help Mamoukakis (photo inset).
“He was unconscious,” Garrett said. “My other friend was holding his head up, trying to make sure he was still breathing.”
The octogenarian was rushed to Bellevue Hospital where he died.
Mamoukakis was a cobbler who owned a small repair shop called Mike’s Shoes on Dey St. in Lower Manhattan for 25 years, family members said.
His loved ones are reeling from the tragedy.
“We’re in mourning right now,” said his 17-year-old grandson Michael Vezyrakis. “Everyone is just really broken up right now.”
The bus driver who struck Mamoukakis remained at the scene and declined to comment. She was not immediately charged, cops said.
Another bicyclist was killed just three blocks away on June 12. Dan Hanegby, a 36-year-old investment banker, was on a Citi Bike when he collided with a charter bus on W. 26th St.