Archive for Injuries and Fatalities

More bad news from Gardena, as a bike rider dies nearly a week after a late July collision

Lately, Gardena seems like a very risky place to ride a bike.

Just days after a group of cyclists had their tickets for obstructing traffic after installing a ghost bike dismissed, a young bike rider has died five days after he was hit by a car.

According to the Daily Breeze, 19-year old Gardena resident Julian Ramos was taken off life support last Sunday, after suffering major head trauma in a collision on Tuesday, July 30th. Ramos was just one block from home when he was hit by a vehicle while riding on Western Avenue at 144th Street around 9:35 pm.

The crash is still under investigation.

The paper reports Ramos had recently reconnected with his mother after growing up in foster care, and was working at the Carl’s Jr at Crenshaw and Redondo Beach to help support her and two of his siblings.

A fund has been established to help pay for his funeral expenses.

Ramos is the third bike rider to be killed in the city in the past 10 months, following the hit-and-run deaths of postal worker Jesse Dotson in July, and Benjamin Torres last October. All three were commuting to or from work.

That’s an exceptionally high death count for a city of less than 60,000 people.

And a fourth man was killed when Gardena police shot an unarmed Ricardo Diaz-Zeferino who was trying to help his brother find his stolen bike this past June.

This is the 59th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and 26th in Los Angeles County, which has already exceeded the county-wide total for each of the last two years.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Julian Ramos and all his family and loved ones.

Update: LA’s bloody hit-and-run epidemic goes on, as bike rider killed in Northridge Monday night

It’s happened again.

According to KNBC-4, a bike rider has died after being hit by a car in the San Fernando Valley last night.

The victim, publicly identified only as a man in his 20s or 30s, was riding near the intersection of Plummer Street and Winnetka Ave in Northridge when he was struck by a silver Mustang convertible around 9 pm. No word on which street he was on or what direction he or the car that hit him was going.

The site a typical Valley intersection, offering the sort of wide, multi-lane streets that encourage speeding and aggressive driving.

The driver fled the scene, abandoning the car on the 10100 block of Oso Ave. Don’t be surprised if the car ends up being reported stolen; even with the vehicle in hand, the police must place the driver behind the wheel before they can make an arrest.

This is the 58th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 25th in Los Angeles County, exceeding the county’s total for each of the last two years. It’s also the 10th bicycling fatality in Los Angeles this year, doubling the total of five in both 2011 and 2012.

And it’s the 14th fatal hit-and-run involving a bike rider in Southern California since the first of the year, and the ninth in LA County — eight of which have occurred in the City of Los Angeles.

Update: I’m told this intersection is actually in Chatsworth, rather than Northridge. 

Update 2: Northridge-Chatsworth Patch identifies the victim as 39-year old Victor Awad of Canoga Park. Awad west riding west on Plummer when he was hit by the Mustang headed north on Winnetka. He was taken to Northridge Hospital, where he died early this morning.

Anyone with information is urged to call LAPD Detective Laurino at 818/644-8115.

Thanks to Jeshizaemon and LAPD Sgt. Stephen Egan for the heads-up.

Update 3: The LAPD has announced the arrest of 51-year old John Bracamonte for the hit-and-run death of Victor Awad. Hopefully, more details soon.

My sympathy and prayers for Victor Awad and his family. 

Update: Three bike riders hit by bus on Camp Pendleton, one killed

Confirmation is just coming in that a bicyclist has died as a result of injuries in a crash at Camp Pendleton yesterday.

I had received an email about the collision earlier this afternoon; however, I was unable to confirm the death until now.

According to the San Diego Union Tribune, three cyclists, identified only as civilians, were hit by a bus while riding through the Marine base; the paper uses the word “slammed” to describe the impact. The collision occurred around 1 pm on Stuart Mesa Road near Cook Crossing.

The paper reports that two of the riders were transported by ambulance, with the third flown out by helicopter.

Unfortunately, the LA Times writes that one of the riders has died, confirming the report in the email; according to the Times, one of the surviving riders remains in critical condition, while the third is listed as serious.

The Times reports the bus belonged to the North County Transit District.

No word yet on how or why the collision occurred.

Civilians are usually allowed to ride through the military base, except during war games or security alerts, and it is one of the most popular routes in North County San Diego cyclists.

This is the 57th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 7th in San Diego County; that compares with 10  in the county this time last year.

Update: Three days later, there has still been no follow-up from the press on this tragedy, and no confirmation from the San Diego coroner’s office. However, the name of the victim has become common knowledge in the San Diego cycling community, identifying him as Udo Heinz. 

Some of the comments below are from people who knew him, and worth reading to get a feeling for the kind of man he was. If anyone wants to provide more information about Heinz, or how the collision happened, let me know; you can find my email on the About page. 

And a quick note to commenters. My policy is to allow any discussion that is courteous, avoids personal attacks and does not disrespect fallen riders. At this time, we have no idea how this collision occurred or who was at fault. So if you feel a need to criticize bike riders, for whatever reason, find another post to leave your comments. This is not the place for it.

Update 2: If you haven’t read the comments below, please do. It’s obvious that Udo Heinz was well-loved, not just a cyclist, but as a father and friend, as this column on Mountain Bike Review makes clear; thanks to Lois for the heads-up.

Update 3: The Union-Tribune finally followed up on their initial story and provided a little more information. 

Heinz, a 43-year old resident of Encinitas, was riding south on Stuart Mesa Road through Camp Pendleton with two other riders around 1 pm Sunday when a North County Transit District bus traveling in the same direction attempted to pass. The bus went into the northbound lane to pass the three riders, then cut back and hit them; the paper does not say if there was oncoming traffic or some other reason the bus came back into the lane before clearing the cyclists. 

There were roughly a dozen passengers on the bus who may be able to help explain what happened, and there should be video from the bus itself.

According to the U-T story, one of the other riders, 62-year old John Edwards, suffered what was described as “serious permanent injuries.” The third rider was hospitalized, but no further information was available. 

A member of the Ranchos Cycling Club, Heinz was a mechanical engineer with two master’s degrees and vice president of commercial products for TUV Rheinland Group.

He leaves behind a wife and children.

Update 4: More details on how the collision occurred and the injuries suffered by Edwards are included in a brief posted online by Edwards’ attorney. Apparently, the driver made no attempt to avoid the riders, despite video from an onboard camera showing them riding directly in front of the bus. 

My prayers for Udo Heinz and the other victims and all their families and loved ones. Let’s hope the two survivors make a full and fast recovery.

San Diego cyclist dies 13 days after falling while riding; victim was CEO of San Diego tech company

Sometimes no news is good news.

Sometimes not.

Word broke nearly two weeks ago that 63-year old Duane Roth, CEO of San Diego tech non-profit Connect, was seriously injured in a solo fall while riding near Lake Cuyamaca in East San Diego County.

Today, after 13 days without further word, the sad news came that he has died from his injuries.

Reportedly a skilled cyclist, Roth was riding with members of the Challenged Athletes Foundation on Sunday, July 21st, when he fell while riding on a winding downhill under misty conditions. He reportedly hit a rock outcropping with enough force to break his helmet.

He was airlifted to a San Diego hospital, where he was placed in a medically induced coma, and a piece of his skull removed to reduce swelling. No word on whether he ever regained consciousness.

The San Diego community reacted with understandable sadness to the news of the popular business leader’s death.

This is the 56th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the sixth in San Diego County. Roth is also the fifth rider to die in a solo fall this year.

My prayers and sympathy go out to Duane Roth and all his family and loved ones.

LA’s hit-and-run bike body count climbs; Lakewood Sunday Funday and Brentwood Grand Prix

Add another name to SoCal’s climbing bike body count.

It made the news all over town when 18-year old Inglewood High School star athlete Markeis Vonreece Parish was killed in a hit-and-run while crossing the street at Crenshaw and 78th Place last month.

What I missed at the time, or the stories I read failed to mention, was that he was walking his bike in an unmarked crosswalk when he was hit by a speeding Mercedes with enough force to send his body sliding a full block to 79th Street, and stripping him of his clothes as he skidded across the pavement.

And even though he was identified as a pedestrian at the time, that makes him more than just another notch in the seemingly endless epidemic of hit-and-runs plaguing Los Angeles and other Southern California cities.

It makes him one of us.

And I apologize for the delay in acknowledging that.

The collision occurred at 6:15 pm on Saturday, July 20th; the car was found less than an hour later, roughly two miles away at Imperial Highway and Spinning Avenue. To the best of my knowledge, no arrest has been made, despite reports that the identity of the driver is common knowledge within the community.

This is the 55th bike-related fatality in Southern California this year, and the 24th in Los Angeles County; that compares to 23 in LA County for all of last year.

It’s also the 9th bicycling death in the City of Los Angeles, compared to five in each of the previous two years. And it’s the 13th fatal hit-and-run involving a bike rider in Southern California since the first of the year; eight of those have occurred in LA County — seven in the City of LA.

My sympathy and prayers for Markeis Parish and all his family and loved ones.

………

Bike Talk airs every Saturday at 10 am; listen to it live or download the podcast from KPFK.

Bike Long Beach hosts Bike Saturdays every weekend; ride your bike to participating local shops and business throughout the city to get special offers and discounts.

CD4 Council Member Tom LaBonge hosts his annual Tour LaBonge each Wednesday through August 17th.

Metro continues to offer a series of free bike safety classes throughout the LA area, including classes this weekend in Downey, Hacienda Heights and Culver City, as well as a Spanish language class Monday in Azusa.

There will be a memorial ride for San Diego cycling legend Gordie Shields today at 9 am, starting at Pepper Park, 3299 Tidelands Ave in National City.

The next edition of the LACBC’s Sunday Funday Rides takes place this Sunday, August 4th, with a Lakewood Family ride led by board member Steve Boyd. The easy ride along the San Gabriel River Bike Path offers options of six and 18 miles, returning along PCH. The ride is free for LACBC members and a guest; meet at Del Valle Park, 5939 Henrilee Street at 9:30 am, rolling at 12:30 pm.

The best of California bike racing comes to LA on Sunday, August 4th when the Brentwood Grand Prix rolls through the streets of the Westside with the SCNCA Elite State Criterium Championships. The racing starts at 7 am and continues through the Women’s Cat 1 – 3 and Men’s Cat 1 – 2 at 2:15 pm and 3:15 pm, respectively. And you won’t want to miss the kid’s races at 12:45 pm.

The Los Angeles Bicycle Advisory Committee meets at 7 pm on the first Tuesday of each even-numbered month; the next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, August 6th at the Hollywood Neighborhood City Hall Community Room, 6501 Fountain Ave.

The USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships returns to the bike-unfriendly StubHub Center in Carson next weekend, with events starting Friday, August 9th and continuing through Sunday the 11th.

Downtown Long Beach will host its inaugural Bike Drive-In starting at 6 pm on Saturday, August 10th in the parking lot across from Fingerprints Music at the intersection of Fourth and Elm streets. The evening will feature live music from three bands, followed by the bike-centric animated feature, The Triplets of Belleville.

The Planning Committee of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition hosts a panel discussion on What Do Elected Officials Want to Hear on Thursday, August 22nd at 7 pm in the Edison Room on the 1st Floor of LACBC Headquarters, 634 S. Spring Street. Free for LACBC members, $10 for non-members.

The second annual Clitoral Mass — yes, you read that right — women’s ride rolls on Saturday, August 24th from 4 pm to midnight. Riders assemble at Watts Towers, 1765 E. 107th Street.

The Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition’s Civic Engagement Committee meets at 6:45 pm on the last Tuesday of each month to discuss how to elect and influence bike-friendly politicians. The next meeting will take place on Tuesday, August 27th, site TBD. The meetings are open to everyone, and you don’t have to be an LACBC member to participate; email bikinginla at hotmail dot com to be added to the discussion list.

Here’s your chance to bike the famed Las Vegas strip and the surrounding Las Vegas Valley, with the 6th Annual RTC Viva Bike Vegas Gran Fondo Pinarello on Saturday, September 21st. The event will offer routes for riders of all levels, from a 17-mile ride to 60-mile Metric Century and a 103-mile Gran Fondo; the longer rides will visit the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and Lake Mead.

Bike SGV invites you to join them for their 2013 Awards Ceremony and Fundraiser on Saturday, September 28th from 5 pm to 11 pm at the San Gabriel Mission Grapevine Arbor, 320 South Mission Drive in San Gabriel.

CicLAvia returns to an expanded version of the original Heart of LA route on Sunday, October 6th.

Cyclist killed by Metrolink train in Jurupa Valley; passengers inconvenienced

What a wrong-headed article.

The Press-Enterprise reports a bike rider was killed by a Metrolink train in Jurupa Valley last night.

Or rather, barely reports, because the story only briefly touches on the fact that someone lost his or her life, instead focusing on the horrible inconvenience it posed to those on the train.

How rude that he should have delayed all those poor, unfortunate people from getting home by dying.

I’m going to be tied up all day today, but I’ll try to add more information later tonigt.

Update: According to the  Press-Enterprise, the collision occurred around 5:24 pm Friday at Rutile Blvd and Van Buren Blvd

The story offers no more information about the victim or the crash itself, even 24 hours later.

The Riverside County Coroner’s office offers a little more information, listing the victim as a 64-year old Riverside resident; his name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. He was declared dead at 5:34 pm.  

And yes, unless the warning signals were malfunctioning in some way, a collision with a train is almost always the rider’s fault. Looking at the satellite view, it’s hard to picture how the victim could have been caught on the tracks by accident; although it is always possible he was riding along the tracks rather than crossing them.

Never go around a warning gate, even if the way seems clear at the time; a train can be coming from out of view, or a stopped train can start without warning.

Other than the flashing lights, bells and lowered gates, that is.

This is the 54th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 6th in Riverside County. Remarkably, it’s also the 5th SoCal cyclist killed in a collision with a train since the first of the year.

Update 2: The victim has finally been publicly identified by the Riverside County Coroner’s office as 64-year old Riverside resident Ronald Rodriguez.

Update: Two bike riders killed in San Bernardino County hit-and-runs; both victims found dead on roadway

I could just scream.

Not only does the body count of bike riding hit-and-run victims continue to rise, but details on the twin San Bernardino County deaths seem to be treated like state secrets.

In what may be the single worst news item I’ve ever seen, the Press-Enterprise reports that a 55-year old bike rider, who has not been publicly identified, died somewhere in Ontario sometime on Thursday morning.

Ontario police responding to a report of a man in the street found the victim lying dead next to a bicycle, and determined he’d been hit by some sort of vehicle.

No word on where in the city of over 160,000 this might have occurred. Nor is there any suggestion of when this might have happened between the hours of midnight and noon, or any information on the victim aside from his age.

Or any other details whatsoever that might allow us to make any sense of the story.

All we know is another bike rider is dead, and another heartless coward ran away after taking the life of a fellow human being.

No word yet about the death on the San Bernardino County Coroner’s website, either; hopefully they’ll provide more information later today.

Update: The coroner’s office has identified the victim as 55-year old Ontario resident Antonio Soriano, and says he was killed on the 700 block of west State Street in Ontario; the call came in to 911 at 5:25 am.

……..

Unfortunately, searching for news of the above death on the county coroner’s website revealed yet another fatal hit-and-run in San Bernardino County.

According to a brief press release from the coroner’s office, a 911 call reported a collision between a vehicle and a bike rider in Phelan — southwest of Hesperia and Victorville — at 11:41 last night. The San Bernardino Sun offers a typically cryptic report that merely retypes the coroner’s release.

When CHP officers and San Bernardino fire fighters arrived at the intersection of Highway 138 and Gramercy Road, they found 29-year old Max Deanwallace Abraham of Wrightwood lying alone in or near the roadway; he was pronounced dead at the scene.

No word on whether he was riding on 138 or trying to cross the dangerous highway, which has earned the nickname Blood Alley.

Again, hopefully we’ll get more information later. But I wouldn’t hold your breath.

Update: Maybe it wasn’t hit-and-run after all. 

According to the Victor Valley Daily Press, Abraham was riding his bike east on Highway 138 when he was struck from behind by a Chevy Tahoe pickup traveling at 60 mph.

A CHP spokesman says he was riding within the right hand lane, even though there appears to be an adequate shoulder in the area. The paper notes Abraham’s bike and body were found four feet inside the lane.

However, the landing point of the victim’s body is a highly unreliable indicator of where the rider was positioned prior to the collision, especially when hit at high speed. It’s entirely possible that the driver drifted off the side of the road to strike his bike, and he was thrown back into the roadway by the force of the impact.

The paper also notes he was not using lights or reflectors despite the late hour, and was not wearing a helmet. If the Daily Press can point out any bike helmet capable of protecting against a 60 mph impact, then, and only then, will that last part be relevant. 

No word on why this was originally reported as a hit-and-run.

The CHP spokesperson identified Abraham as a resident of Sunland, rather than Wrightwood; no explanation for the discrepancy.  Anyone with information is urged to contact the CHP at 760-241-1186, or call anonymously at 800-835-5247.

………

These are the 52nd and 53rd bicycling fatalities in Southern California this year, and the eighth in San Bernardino County; that compares to seven in the county this time last year.

Nearly 25% of those deaths — 13 out of 53 — have been the result of hit-and-runs.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for both victims and their loved ones.

Update: Orange County bike rider dies from injuries suffered in Saturday collision

Make that 51.

The ever growing body count of Southern California bicyclists continues to rise, as an Orange County bike rider died Monday morning following a Saturday collision.

According to the Orange County Coroner’s office, 40-year old Stanton resident Alberto Ramos was riding at the intersection of Dale and Cerritos Avenues in Stanton when he was struck by a small SUV at 10:20 pm on Saturday, July 20th. I’m told he died at UCI Medical Center in Orange without regaining consciousness.

His death came less than three weeks before his 41st birthday.

A source tells me the driver was arrested at the scene, which would suggest a possible DUI. However, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department refused to provide any information about the driver or any possible charges.

No other information is available at this time.

This is the 51st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, which compares with 41 this time last year. It’s also the 7th bicycling death in Orange County this year, as the county maintains its deadly one-a-month average of cycling fatalities.

That increase over last year is due entirely to a dramatic jump in fatalities in Los Angeles County, which has suffered 10 more deaths than this time last year.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Alberto Ramos and his family.

Update: The driver who was arrested has been identified as Charles Edward Bennett, who faces charges of driving on a suspended license, felony possession of a controlled substance & misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia. 

Remarkably, he was released from jail on July 29th — despite a previous failure to appear on charges of driving on a suspended license & failure to provide proof of insurance from an arrest last March. 

Needless to say, he failed to appear for his most recent court date scheduled for August 5th, and is now listed as a fugitive. 

Police seek hit-and-run driver who killed 90-year old bike rider in April

A bad news day just got that much worse.

The LAPD has just released a dash cam video showing the hit-and-run death of a 90-year old bike rider in graphic detail.

Three months after the fact.

According to a video posted on the department’s YouTube page, Los Angeles resident Joo Yoon was riding in a marked crosswalk on Virgil at 6th Street around 5:10 pm on Saturday, April 27th; judging from the video, he appears to be headed west on 6th.

The light apparently turns green while he’s crossing the street. The bus driver recording the video waits for Yoon to finish crossing, while a driver in the right lane, whose view is apparently obstructed by the bus, blows through and hits the rider, who doesn’t move after the collision. Police report he died at a local hospital shortly afterwards.

The only thing harder to watch than the collision itself are the drivers who casually go around as a man lies dying in the street.

Police are looking for a a newer model Nissan GT-R, gun metal or dark grey, with 3″ white racing strip from front fender to tail light section, possibly on both sides, and damage to the front bumper area and hood — although that was likely fixed some time ago. They are also interested in a second vehicle, possibly a newer model black or dark colored Audi.

The suspect is described as an Asian man about 25-years old, with black hair and brown eyes, about 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighing around 180 to 190 pounds.

Anyone with information is urged to call LAPD West Traffic Detectives Willmon at (213) 473-0222.

This is the 50th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and 23rd in Los Angeles County, equalling the total for all of last year. It’s also the 8th bicycling death in the City of Los Angeles, which compares with 5 for each of the last two years.

My prayers and sympathy for Joo Yoon and all his loved ones.

62-year old bike rider killed in Fontana collision

Once again, a bike rider has been killed in San Bernardino County.

And once again, we have virtually no information on the tragedy.

According to the Press-Enterprise, 62-year old Hershel Trueblood of Fontana was killed when he “rode his bike into traffic,” whatever that means.

The San Bernardino County Coroner reports he was riding on Sierra Avenue at Fontana Circle — an address that doesn’t seem to exist — at 8:18 am Monday when he rode in front of a vehicle, and was hit by a car headed south on Sierra; he died at Arrowhead Medical Center at 1:51 pm.

No word from any source on which direction Trueblood was riding.

From the limited description, it sounds like he may have swerved into the traffic lane, for whatever reason, and been hit from behind in a classic SWSS — single witness suicide swerve. If there were no witnesses other than the driver who hit him who can verify that he rode into traffic, it’s just as possible that he may have been riding straight and hit from behind by an inattentive driver.

As the Urban Country points out, there are incentives for drivers, police and society at large to blame the victim for his own death when he is unable to defend himself.

Then again, for all we know, he could have been riding against traffic, or either he or the driver may have somehow strayed onto the wrong side of the road, resulting in head-on collision. Or he could have been riding on the sidewalk and come out into the street.

Unless someone bothers to do a follow-upthat goes beyond retyping the coroner’s cryptic report — which too often, doesn’t happen in the Inland Empire — we may never know.

This is the 49th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the sixth in San Bernardino County. Trueblood is the third rider killed in Fontana in the last three years, and the second in the last two months; the others died in collisions with trains.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Hershel Trueblood and his family and friends.