Word broke late Saturday night that a cyclist may have killed in a collision with a Metro Blue Line train in the Florence neighborhood of Los Angeles.
KABC-7 tweeted that a bike rider had been killed crossing the tracks at East Gage and Holmes Avenues, citing a report from the CHP. However, while the Highway Patrol dispatch confirmed a fatality, it did not identify the victim as a bike rider.
Any question was resolved Sunday evening when KCBS-2 confirmed that a 51-year old Downey resident was killed when he rode his bike in front of the train, which was traveling at 50 mph at the time. At that speed, such a collision is unlikely to be survivable; he was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:01 pm.
The victim was not publicly identified pending notification of next of kin.
No word on why he did not see or hear the train approaching, or whether the crossing arms were working properly.
This is the 47th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 20th in Los Angeles County. It’s also the sixth cycling death in the City of Los Angeles since the first of the year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
[…] train v bike wreck in CA this time. Downey bike rider killed in collision with Metro Blue Line Once again, trains are easy to see and hear, particularly the type of trains that hit this cyclist. […]