It looks like LA’s recent epidemic of bicycling deaths has moved south.
According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, a man on a road bike was killed when a driver drifted off the road, and lost control on the soft shoulder of a highway just outside El Cajon.
The crash occurred around 3:15 pm on Olde Highway 80 west of Flinn Crest Street.
The 67-year old driver reportedly sideswiped the victim, identified only as a 58-year old Alpine resident, before continuing to strike a bus stop sign, mailbox and a parked pickup truck.
The victim was taken to San Diego’s Sharp Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Video from the scene posted by San Diego’s KGTV-10 shows a badly mangled bike, and the driver’s minivan with the front end smashed in.
A 58 year old bicyclist is in serious condition after a van veered onto the shoulder of Olde Hwy 80 in El Cajon and hit him as well as a parked truck. As you can see, there is significant damage to the van and the bicycle. Alcohol does not appear to have been a factor @10News pic.twitter.com/q5vzqC2tqH
— Zach Wonderlie (@PhotogZach) April 18, 2018
This is at least the 19th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the third in San Diego County.
Update: The victim has been identified as 58-year old Brian Jennings, a professor of comparative politics and U.S. Government at Grossmont College.
Police believe the driver of the minivan fell asleep before drifting off the road and slamming into Jennings.
Update 2: I originally said the victim was riding a mountain bike, based on the initial reports; however, the video above clearly shows a road bike. Thanks to BV for the correction.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Brian Jennings and his loved ones.
We lift up the family and friends of the victim in prayer
“California Highway Patrol says a van veered onto the shoulder of Olde Highway 80, hitting both the cyclist and a parked truck around 3 p.m. ”
They just write it as if the van had no person driving it.
*road bike. I spot drop handlebars,
Good catch. I missed that.
So there are huge numbers of drivers who drive sleepy and
Notice themselves falling asleep by drifting ‘a bit’ routinely.
To deter this requires major mandatory prison time and progressive regulation. If you have access to a smartphone requiring proof of rest by it would be a start. As driving becomes more of a fetish we can require standardised devices be required for autopilot off operation to be legal. All dui fatalities need mandatory life in prison with sleepyness being for money usually, so worse arguably then medical addiction. People work more then 40 hours in a week to avoid getting a college degree, kill someone, expect freedom?
As someone who knew Brian Jennings, that was extremely hard to watch. I would ask that people please consider the friends and family of victims in these cases before posting a video like this. I appreciate that we could confirm it wasn’t a mountain bike, but it makes things just that much harder to deal with. How would you feel if that were a member of your family?