Sad news from Perris, as a bike rider was killed in a wrong-way collision on Wednesday.
According to the Press-Enterprise, the victim, identified only as a 54-year old man, was riding against traffic on the 300 block of Fourth Street when he was struck by a work truck around 4:43 pm.
He was taken to a hospital, where he died sometime later.
No other information is available at this time.
A street view shows a wide four lane roadway with a center turn lane, with sidewalks and a wide concrete gutter on either side. No word on why he would have been riding on the wrong side of the roadway, rather than with traffic or on the sidewalk.
Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Kiebach at 951/210-1000.
This is the 33rd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the second in Riverside County; it’s also the fourth bicycling fatality in Perris in less than three years.
Update: The Press-Enterprise reports the victim has been identified as Perris resident Roger Villegas. He died at Menifee Valley Medical Center before 5:30 pm, roughly 45 minutes after the collision.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Roger Villegas and his loved ones.
He was pronounced dead at the scene; the LA Times reports the impact knocked him onto the train tracks in the center divider. The speed limit there is 65 mph, so there was virtually no chance of survival.
Bicycles are banned from most freeways, and the 10 through Los Angeles County is no exception. Even where it is allowed, bikes are not permitted in the traffic lane, let alone in the far left lane.
There’s no word on why he was there, or where he may of entered the highway. Or whether he had lights on his bike at that hour.
This is the 32nd bicycling fatality in Southern California, and ninth in Los Angeles County.
Update: The victim has been identified as 40-year old Eduardo Castillo, who is described only as a transient.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Eduardo Castillo and his loved ones.
April 5, 2016 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on 82-year old retired CA Bar judge dies two weeks after bicycling collision in Palos Verdes Estates
More sad news today.
Two weeks ago, we linked to a story saying an 82-year old man was hit by a car while riding in Palos Verdes Estates.
Today the Daily Breeze reported the victim has died.
Marina del Rey resident Peter Krichman was riding on the 100 block of Palos Verdes Drive West on Friday, March 18th when he was hit by a car at 11:45 am.
He was unresponsive following the wreck, and was taken to County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, where he passed away on April 2nd without regaining consciousness.
No word on how the collision occurred, or if the driver was cited.
A street view shows what appears to be a busy residential street with on lane headed north, and two lanes south once you pass an initial divider.
According to the Daily News, Krichman was a retired judge with the California State Bar, who was scheduled to be one of the first residents of the Los Angeles Jewish Home’s upcoming Fountainview at Gonda Westside.
In fact, he is featured on the website of the new retirement community, which pictures him in his riding gear, and says he typically rode at least 100 miles a week.
It’s worth taking a few minutes to read the Daily News piece by reporter Larry Altman; every fallen rider should be treated with that much respect.
Following today’s death in Studio City, this the 31st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eighth in Los Angeles County. That compares with just 12 deaths in the seven-county SoCal region this time last year, and five in the county.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Peter Krichman and all his family.
Thanks to Jim Lyle and John McBrearty for the heads-up.
He was pronounced dead at the scene. No other information is available at this time.
Ventura Place is a short, four-lane commercial street running diagonally between Ventura and Laurel Canyon Boulevards.
This is the 30th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the seventh in Los Angeles County; it’s the first fatality in the City of Los Angeles since the start of the year.
Update 2: The Daily News has identified the victim as 42-year old North Hollywood resident Cario Joseph Castaneda. The paper says he was riding west when he was struck by a private trash truck as he entered the intersection.
Other reports indicated the driver was traveling in the same direction, suggesting Castaneda may have been right hooked, possibly as he came off the sidewalk.
A comment from Alberto identifies Castaneda as his nephew, and says he was riding to work as he did every morning.
New has just come in of yet another fatal bicycling collision.
According to the San Bernardino Sun, 21-year old Jimmy Lynn Fraley was hit a car in the area of Devore Road and the northbound onramp to the 15 Freeway around 5:50 pm Saturday.
He was pronounced dead at the scene minutes late.
Once again, no other information is available at this time.
Devore Road doesn’t seem to intersect with the 15; however, it would appear the collision was somewhere in this area.
This is the 29th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fifth in San Bernardino County.
Update: According to the Highland News, Fraley was riding west on Devore Road — which appears to run north and south — when he was left-crossed by the driver of an eastbound pickup as it turned into the I-15 onramp.
Update 2: Friends described Fraley as a vibrant man who took up bicycling three years ago to visit his girlfriend in San Bernardino; he had recently begun training for his first triathlon.
She died Anaheim Regional Medical Center an hour later.
No other information is available at this time.
A street view shows a two-lane street with limited lane markings on Page, and a four-lane street with left turn lanes on Stanton; the intersection is controlled with a traffic signal.
This is the 28th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the sixth in Orange County.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Becky Sheehan and all her family.
A photograph from the scene show an aqua beach cruiser lying between the number one and two lanes, while another shows her tarped body resting on the bike lane marker itself. Which raises the question of just how far she strayed out of the bike lane, if at all.
Lining up a street view with the photos places the collision site somewhere along here, with a door zone-buffered bike lane next to two lanes of traffic.
The left turn lane suggests she may have been attempting to make a U-turn or turn left into the power plant. Or she may have swerved to avoid an obstacle or a vehicle pulling out from the curb.
There’s a 35 mph speed limit on the street; however, the straight, uninterrupted traffic lanes are likely to encourage speeding through that section.
This is the 27th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and remarkably, the sixth in San Diego County. That compares with ten in SoCal this time last year, and three in the county.
Correction: I originally located the collision site further north away from the turn lane; thanks to Skip Pile for the correction.
Yet another person riding a bike has been left to die in the street by a heartless coward who fled the scene.
According to the Orange County Register, a bike rider identified only as an adult male was hit by an SUV shortly before 1 am on the 1400 block of West Warner Ave, just East of the South Pacific Ave in Santa Ana.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
There’s no word at this time what may have caused the collision, or how it occurred. Witnesses reported the driver fled east on Warner, but no description of the driver or the SUV is currently available.
A street view shows a wide open three lane roadway east of Pacific, with no parking allowed and nothing to slow drivers down.
Anyone with information is urged to call Santa Ana police Cpl. Matt Wharton at 714/245-8209.
This is the 26th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fifth in Orange County; it’s also the second in Santa Ana since the first of the year. That compares with ten in the seven county SoCal region this time last year, and none in the county.
Update: The victim has been identified as 44-year old Ricardo Aguilar; no city of residence was given. The time of the collision has been changed to around 5 am. Note: The story in the Register misidentified the victim as Ricardo Martinez; his niece sent a correction in the comments below.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Ricardo Aguilar and his loved ones.
The victim, identified only as a 27-year old man, reportedly stopped at the trolley crossing alongside Harbor Drive near Sampson Street around 5:45 this morning.
After a southbound trolley passed, he rode around the crossing bars, and was immediately struck by a second trolley headed in the opposite direction. Emergency personnel tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Witnesses said that he was wearing earbuds, and may not have heard the second trolley approaching.
San Diego’s KUSI TV reports employees of both Naval Base San Diego and cyber-defense company BAE Systems, located nearby, rushed to the scene, concerned the victim may have been one of their co-workers.
This is a tragic reminder to always wait until the crossing arms are raised before walking or riding across any railroad tracks.
This is the 25th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fifth in San Diego County; it’s also the third bike-related death in San Diego since the first of the year.
Update: The victim has been identified as 27-year old Robert Jamil-Hanna Warren, possibly of National City.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
Ghost bike for Jonathan Tansavatdi; photo by Jim Lyle
Word is just coming in that someone has been killed while riding a bicycle in Rancho Palos Verdes.
Very few details are available at this time.
However, KNBC-4 reports the victim was struck by a moving truck on Vallon Drive near Hawthorne Boulevard around 2:50 pm this afternoon; presumably they mean a truck for a moving company, rather than one in motion.
According to the station, sheriff’s deputies believe the truck, which KCBS-2 identifies as a big rig, was making a right turn off an undisclosed side street when it struck the rider.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. No other information is available at this time.
A satellite view shows Vallon as a narrow, winding residential road; Via la Cresta is the only cross street that enters it, just above Hawthorne, though Vallon connects with Marne Drive just below Hawthorne.
This is the 24th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 6th in Los Angeles County.
According to a sheriff’s spokesperson, the victim was riding down the hill on Hawthorne at a high rate of speed, estimated at 45 mph. The driver of a Mayflower truck turned right onto Hawthorne in front of the cyclist, who was unable to stop at that speed.
The driver continued on, reportedly having no idea the rider had collided with his truck.
However, if the rider was really going that fast, he would have hit with a significant amount of force, making it seem odd that the driver failed to notice.
Regardless, sheriff’s deputies concluded that the driver didn’t break the law, and everything he did was “legal at the time.”
Update 3: In their report from the scene, which I was unable to view last night, KNBC-4 reports the truck was stopped at the red light headed west on Hawthorne, and made a wide turn onto Vallon when the light turned green.
The victim, who still hasn’t been publicly identified, apparently rounded a blind curve on westbound Hawthorne while descending at a high rate of speed; unable to stop, he slammed into the side or rear of the truck.
The driver continued on, dragging the bicycle roughly 200 feet up Vallon before finally coming to a stop.
There’s no way to know if the victim would have had a chance if the driver had stopped after the initial collision.
Update 4: The victim has been identified as 29-year old Redondo Beach resident Pissanuk Jonathan Tansavatdi. Thanks to Martin Blount for the heads-up.
Meanwhile, Blount forwards a video showing the descent on Hawthorne Blvd. The intersection at Vallon comes into view at the 1:30 mark, with the riders passing through at 49 mph, giving credence to the police theory that Tansavatdi may have hit the truck at 45 mph.
Update 5: I’ve heard from a relative of Tansavatdi, who described him as sunny, cheerful, handsome, talented engineer, and a friend to many.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his or her loved ones.
