The man, who has not been publicly identified, was pronounced dead at the scene, despite the efforts of paramedics.
For once, the driver stuck around afterwards. Westminster police said drugs or alcohol didn’t appear to play a role in the crash.
There’s no word on how the crash occurred, or who may have been at fault. Except that anyone who can still ride a bicycle at that age deserved better.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Westminster Police watch commander at 714/548-3767.
This is at least the 38th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and ninth that I’m aware of in Orange County — a rate of one every month.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
We may have a lot of things to be thankful for this year. But safe streets clearly isn’t one of them.
That was driven home once again yesterday afternoon, when a man was killed by an elderly driver while riding his bike in Fountain Valley.
According to News Santa Ana, the victim was riding east on Ellis Ave at Magnolia Street when he was left-crossed by an 84-year old woman turning onto Magnolia from westbound Ellis around 3:33 pm.
The victim was identified as 68-year old Fountain Valley resident Charlie Chen. He died after being taken to a nearby hospital.
The driver, identified as Huntington Beach resident Barbara Peters, remained at the scene and cooperated with investigators.
Police say she did not appear to be under the influence. However, there’s no way to know if age played a factor.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Fountain Valley Police Department’s Traffic Bureau at 714/593-4481, incident #23-40091.
This is at least the 65th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eighth that I’m aware of in Orange County.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Charlie Chen and all his loved one.
July 13, 2023 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on More on Fountain Valley hit-and-run, Boerner pulls Stop As Yield bill — again, and this is who we share the road with
This is the face of hit-and-run.
It’s not often that we learn what happened to a crash victim after the initial news stories.
If it even makes the news, that is.
But we’re learning a lot more about the bike-riding victim of a Fountain Valley hit-and-run driver, who barely survived the initial impact.
They place the crash at 10:30 pm on Tuesday the 4th, when Robinson was run down from behind as he was riding in the northbound bike lane on Bushard Street.
A crowdfunding campaign started by the victim’s family to help pay his medical expenses reports Robinson’s heart was ruptured when he was literally run over by the driver’s SUV, surviving only because one of the first people on the scene had medical training.
He was rushed into surgery, where doctor’s were able to repair his heart, despite suffering an injury with a less than 1% survival rate.
They add this about his ongoing injuries —
Caysen was in a medically induced coma and put on a ventilator. Drs weaned him off, and he had surgery for a compound fracture of his tibia. Caysen still needs surgery for the 4 facial fractures. Today Caysen had unidentified pain in his shoulder and wrist, and Drs are looking into additional broken or fractured bones.
According to his family, Robinson is facing a long road to recovery.
Police are looking for the driver of a possible 2014-2019 Toyota Highlander. Anyone with information is urged to call the Traffic Bureau with the Fountain Valley Police Department at 714/593-4481.
The crowdfunding campaign for Caysen Robinson has raised nearly 80% of the $50,000 goal — an amount that is likely to barely put a dent in the hospital and therapy bills illegally left on his battered shoulders by the heartless coward who left him lying broken in the street.
So if you’ve got any extra cash lying around, they could certainly use the help.
Photo from the GoFundMe page for Caysen Robinson. Thanks to Bill Sellin for the heads-up.
And yes, that’s the same Tasha Boerner who pledged to introduce a bill mandating licensing for ebike riders; we should have more on that tomorrow.
Meanwhile, a number of bills were passed out of committee in the state Senate, including —
AB 645 creating a speed cam pilot program in six California cities, including Los Angeles, Long Beach and Glendale;
AB 413 mandating daylighting at intersections to improve safety;
AB 825 to legalize sidewalk riding anywhere in California that lacks good bike infrastructure (and no, sharrows aren’t “good” bike infrastructure);
AB 7 requiring transportation and highway planners to align their work with the state’s climate goals;
and AB 610 to create statewide a youth transit pass program.
………
This is who we share the road with.
Part 1 — A 69-year old man was critically injured when he was struck by a hit-and-run driver in LA’s Pacoima neighborhood; the driver hit the victim as he was standing next to his car after drifting into the bike lane. As always, there is a standing $25,000 reward for any hit-and-run resulting in serious injuries in the City of Los Angeles.
Part 2 — A Pennsylvania driver faces charges for killing a 54-year old man during a New York road rage confrontation, accelerating into the victim after he got out of his truck to slash the Pennsylvania man’s tires; witnesses absolved the killer, saying he acted in self-defense to protect two young girls in his car.
Metro, LADOT, Walk ‘N Rollers and BikeLA are hosting a community meeting tonight at the Helms Design Center in Culver City to consider first and last mile connections to the Culver City Metro Station; this comes after Culver City’s newly conservative city council voted to remove the highly successful Move Culver City protected bike lanes through the downtown area. Which is probably the most I’ve ever used Culver City in a single sentence.
Good for them. Caltrans took Palo Alto residents by surprise with plans to install bike lanes on El Camino Real after repaving the street, which received a lukewarm response from local officials — but since it’s a state highway, they may be powerless to stop it. Now do PCH through Malibu, which is also a state highway.
Yosemite National Park — or Yo Semite as our former president once called it — is addressing the crushing traffic congestion caused by tourists cars by introducing a free bikeshare system.
National
I want to be like them when I grow up. An Ohio newspaper talks with a couple in their 70s who were riding their tandem home to Iowa after visiting their son in Virginia — which is nothing compared to their 4,500-mile Washington to Maine cross-country ride.
Dueling demonstrations took place between people for and against a planned road diet in Boston’s West Roxbury neighborhood, although only 50 people turned out to protest it. Someone should tell them that road diets and protected bike lanes have been shown to increase sales and reduce retail vacancies, while improving safety for all road users.
Tuesday’s stage victory by Bahrain Victorious rider Pello Bilbao was hailed by His Majesty the King’s Representative for Humanitarian Work and Youth Affairs His Highness Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa of Bahrain. They probably would have given him a longer title, but couldn’t think of anything else to add.
Yet another Southern California bike rider has fallen victim to a drunk or stoned driver.
Allegedly.
According to the Daily Pilot, 62-year old Garden Grove resident Phong Khuu was killed by a U-turning driver while crossing the street just north of Square Mile Park in Fountain Valley early Tuesday morning.
McDonough remained after the crash, and was arrested on suspicion of DUI causing injury, and vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. At last report, he was being held on $100,000 bond pending yesterday’s arraignment.
Fountain Valley Police Chief Matt Sheppard reports the department makes an average of 15 to 20 DUI busts each month.
Which is about 15 to 20 too many.
Anyone with information is urged to call the traffic bureau of the Fountain Valley Police Department at 714/593-4481.
This is at least the 74th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 16th that I’m aware of in Orange County.
That’s one more than in 2020, which was the county’s worst year in recent memory.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Phong Khuu and all his family and loved ones.
Thanks to bike lawyer Richard Duquette for the heads-up.
The fact that Dac was in the crosswalk suggests he had been riding on the sidewalk. That means he wouldn’t have been riding against traffic, since both the sidewalk and crosswalk are bidirectional.
Although drivers don’t always look for anyone coming from the opposite direction, even though they should.
The driver remained at the scene. Police do not believe intoxication played a role in the crash.
Anyone with information is urged to call the traffic bureau of the Fountain Valley Police Department at 714/593-4481, reference incident #22-22611.
This is at least the 48th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eighth that I’m aware of in Orange County.
That puts us on track for nearly 100 SoCal bicycling deaths this year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Dac Them Kieu and all his loved ones.
A 71-year old man riding a bicycle lost his life in Fountain Valley early Saturday morning, thanks to a drunken coward who didn’t have the decency stop.
Allegedly.
According to County News TV, police responding to reports of a crash found 71-year old Santa Ana resident Liem Bui lying on southbound Euclid Ave just north of Heil Ave, next to Mile Square Regional Park, around 5:39 this morning.
The driver fled the scene, leaving Liem to die alone in the street.
Police identified the suspect vehicle, locating it in Westminster sometime later with 32-year-old Fountain Valley resident Amanda Martin still in the driver’s seat.
She was arrested on suspicion of felony driving under the influence, felony hit-and-run and vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.
It’s not clear if she was driving at the time or had stopped, or whether she was awake or passed out behind the wheel.
She was being held on $100,000 bond.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Traffic Bureau of the Fountain Valley Police Department at 714/593-4481.
This is at least the fifth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the first that I’m aware of in Orange County. Three of those deaths have been hit-and-runs.
The driver fled north on Brookhurst, and was last seen turning right onto Ellis.
Police are looking for a red 1990s Ford Mustang with damage to the front end. Anyone with information is urged to call the Fountain Valley Police DepartKent at 714/593-4485.
This is the 42nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the sixth in Orange County.
It’s also the second fatal hit-and-run in Fountain Valley in the last three weeks, following the death of popular Orange County runner Juan Garcia; an arrest was made in that case.
Update: According to KTLA-5, 25-year old Huntington Beach resident Justin German was arrested later the same day after a tip from someone who recognized the car. Thanks to Peter for the heads-up.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Bihn Ngo and his loved ones.
After going a full 30 days without a bicycling fatality, three Southern California bike riders have lost their lives in the past three days, as a rider succumbs to injuries suffered in a Fountain Valley collision on Saturday.
According to KTLA-5, 36-year old Westminster resident Vinh Tran was riding south on Brookhurst Street at Heil Ave when he was struck by a Jeep driven by William Joseph Klein of Santa Ana.
Tran was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries, where he died earlier today.
He was reportedly riding next to the curb when he was rear-ended by Klein. A street view shows three southbound lanes on Brookhurst, with right turn lane near Heil; it’s possible Klein may have been attempting to make a right turn when he ran into Tran.
Then again, it’s also possible Klein may not have been in control of his vehicle, since he was arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of a prescription drug. He was taken into custody on Saturday on suspicion of felony DUI and gross vehicular manslaughter, and is being held on $100,000 bond.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the Fountain Valley Police Department at 714-593-4484.
This is the 84th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 19th in Orange County; that compares with 12 in the county last year. It’s also the second cycling death to occur on Brookhurst in Fountain Valley in the last three years, just 2.6 miles apart.
My deeper sympathy and prayers for Vinh Tran and all his loved ones.
The report doesn’t say why he went out into the traffic lane, or wether he was riding with or against traffic, rear-ended or hit head on.
He was transported to a local hospital in critical condition; according to the Orange County Coroner’s office, he died at 11:50 am this morning, just four days short of his 16th birthday.
The driver remained at the scene, and there was no suspicion of drug or alcohol use. Anyone with information is urged to call the Fountain Valley Police Department at 714-593-4484.
This is the 26th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fifth in Orange County.
I’m told a ghost bike will be installed for Sean on Saturday morning.
This one will devastate a lot of people, including his schoolmates, as well as those of us who never knew him.
And now never will.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Sean Severson and all his family and loved ones.
Update: I’m told by Danny Gamboa that there are no brake marks on the street anywhere near where the collision occurred, indicating that the driver made no attempt to stop. Which suggests that Severson either made a last-second swerve to the left that the driver was unable to avoid, or that the driver never saw him.
Unfortunately, Sean isn’t around to tell his version of events.
