Word is just coming in that a bike rider was killed in Pomona this morning.
According to an announcement from the Pomona Police Department, the victim, identified only as an adult in his 40s, was hit by a Foothill Transit bus on White Ave between Orange Grove and Holt Avenues. The bus line serves cities in the San Gabriel and Pomona Valleys.
No other information is available at this time.
This is the eighth confirmed bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth in Los Angeles County. It’s also the fourth bike-related fatality in Pomona in the last 12 months.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
Update: A report from KABC-7 places the time of the collision at 5:45 am, and the location as the intersection of White Ave and Alvarado Street. The victim was pronounced dead at Pomona Valley Medical Center.
Update 2: The San Bernardino Sun and Inland Valley Daily Bulletin report the victim, who has not been publicly identified, was a 42-year old man. They also place the location two blocks south of Alvarado, near the intersection of White Ave and Chester Place.
The papers report the bus was traveling north on White at the time of the collision; no information was available on which direction the victim was riding or how the collision occurred.
The incident is still under investigation; a nearby resident reports that someone moved the bike closer to the victim from where it originally landed to a location closer to the victim, where it was run over by a passing vehicle, which will undoubtedly complicate the investigation.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Pomona Police Department’s Traffic Services Unit at 909-620-2081.
Thanks to Erik Griswold for the link.
Update 3: According to a blog post from the Seegmiller Law Firm, the victim has been identified as 42-year old Villa Park resident Steven Slater. The site also reports some passengers on the bus suffered soft tissue injuries in the collision. Thanks to West Seegmiller for the heads-up.
It’s a very sad commentary on today’s media when an attorney scoops every press outlet in identifying the victim of a collision.
