THE BALLOON MAN

Circus Worker Killed In Queens Bicycle Accident
By: NY1 News
06/18/2012

A worker for the Big Apple Circus is dead after a bicycle accident in Queens.

Police say 39-year-old electrician Tskaka Cooke was riding his bike Saturday evening on Union Turnpike in Fresh Meadows when the driver of a parked car opened his door and Cooke slammed into it.

The circus says the accident happened after a show at nearby Cunningham Park.

"The two nurses when they were working they were asking for towels, and I ran inside and I grabbed a towel so they could make some type of tourniquet. But when I first saw him I did the sign of the Cross cause I knew only God can probably help him now," said one witness.

Cooke was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Police say the driver of the car stayed on the scene and was not charged.

The circus dedicated Sunday night's show to Cooke.