The bad news just seems to keep coming these days.
Because for the fifth time in just over a week, someone has been killed riding a bicycle in Southern California.
This time in Long Beach, at the hands of a city employee.
According to the Long Beach Post, the victim was struck by a city worker, driving a city-owned pickup, when the man on the bike allegedly ran a stop sign at 17th Street and Oregon Ave around 7:40 Friday morning.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Long Beach Press-Telegram reports the driver was headed south on Oregon, which would suggest the victim, who has not been identified, was traveling on 17th when he was struck in the middle of the intersection.
The crash was reportedly witnessed by another city employee, who remained at the scene with the driver. Police do not believe the driver was under the influence, speeding or driving distracted.
There’s no word on why the victim would have run the stop sign directly in front of an oncoming truck, which did not have a stop sign.
This is at least the 15th bicycling fatality in Southern California already this year, and the sixth that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County, in what has been a very bloody start to the year.
Update: The victim has been identified as 22-year old Long Beach resident Ayomipo Lawal.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Ayomipo Lawal and his loved ones.
@bikinginla wow, I’ve been following your blog for a while, iirc So Cal average roughly 50-60 bicyclist’s deaths/year and sorta hovers around those numbers? About 1/week? With the count at 15 that’s like 3/week, and at this rate the yearly number will be around 150?
https://www.usnews.com/news/healthiest-communities/articles/2020-01-28/bike-fatalities-hit-25-year-high-in-california-rise-nationwide
This article says CA as a whole is at a 25 year high and trending up?!