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.
The hit-and-run epidemic show no sign of stopping.
The same day a Santa Ana bike rider was murdered by a driver who fled the scene, leaving his or her innocent victim to die in the street, another bicyclist was lucky to survive being run down by a hit-and-run driver on the Ventura County section of Southern California’s killer highway.
Or maybe calling PCH a serial killer highway is more accurate.
Here’s a brief press release from the victim’s family.
Santa Barbara family seeks answers and witnesses in PCH hit-and-run
On Saturday, February 12 at 11:10 a.m., Santa Barbara resident Jeff Sczechowski (seh-CHOW-ski) was struck from behind and thrown into a parked vehicle while riding his black mountain bike on the shoulder of the northbound side of the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH). This was just north of the Sycamore Canyon State Park entrance across from the Thornhill Broome Beach Campground that is south of the large sand hill on the inland side of the PCH. He was wearing a white helmet and grey and yellow cycling clothing. The victim was transported by ambulance to the Ventura County Medical Center, where he is hospitalized and receiving care. He has sustained significant injuries to his back, leg, and arms. Jeff, a chemical engineering PhD, manages a research center in the UCSB Department of Physics. He is also an avid cyclist and bonsai tree artist. Jeff, his wife, and their children ask anyone who may have been involved in or witnessed the event to please contact Ventura California Highway Patrol Officer Bowen at 805-662-2640.
Shamefully, fully half of the 12 people killed riding bicycles in Southern California this year have been the victims of hit-and-run drivers.
Yes, 50 percent.
There is simply no excuse.
Not for the heartless cowards who lack the basic human decency to stick around after a crash. Or for those in elected office who lack the courage to do anything about it.
The project would have added 4.75 miles of offroad trails along a pair of channels, where they would have had zero impact on traffic and the surrounding community. And provided much needed safe routes through the beachside city, which is already one of the most dangerous places to ride a bike in Orange County.
Instead, the responses from local residents were apparently so bad that local officials decided not to do the right thing, and killed the project instead.
Never mind the current dangers faced by bike riders and pedestrians in the city. Or the desperate need to get people out of their cars, at a time when Orange County is already a year-round fire zone.
And never mind that access to a safe bikeway increases local property values.
There’s simply no rational reason to oppose a project like this, let alone cancel it.
But they did anyway.
Thanks to Eric Eberwein for the tip.
………
Say goodbye to the green bollards on Del Amo Blvd in Long Beach, and hello to a new curb-protected bike lane.
………
The Davis Bike Counter wasn’t just removed. It was killed by an errant driver.
No bias here, either. An Indian protected bike lane was removed after drivers were “inconvenienced” by the lane reduction to make room for it, never mind that bike riders were inconvenienced by the drivers parking in it.
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
San Francisco ripped out a protected bike lane due to a construction zone, temporarily replacing it with a painted bike lane, despite being on a street where three people have been killed in three years. Never mind that removing the protected lane will make the city liable for any injuries that happen as a result.
Utah’s law cutting the blood alcohol level required for DUI to .05, from the .08 allowed the other 49 states, is showing demonstrable benefits, with drunk driving deaths and crashes dropping 20% in the state since the law went into effect.
A cautionary story from Charleston, South Carolina, where police are reopening a crash investigation after a man died two months after he was hit by a driver, despite being released from the hospital the same day with an apparent misdiagnosis of just minor injuries.
Retired Irish pro Nicholas Roche has been warned not to ride in the mountains south of Dublin, while he’s filming the British version of Dancing With the Stars in the city, because thieves are known to knock riders off their bikes, then toss them in their van and drive off while the rider is still sprawled in the roadway.
The Italian movie The Pantini Affair should be coming to the US, after Capital Motion Picture Group picked up the North American rights to the 2020 film about the last five years in the life of legendary cyclist Marco Pantani.
January 21, 2022 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on 52-year old man killed riding bike on PCH in Huntington Beach; 2nd Orange County bicycling fatality in past 6 days
SoCal’s killer highway has claimed yet another life.
The driver, who has not been identified, remained at the scene. Both he and his wife suffered minor injuries, and were taken to a local hospital.
Police don’t believe he was under the influence.
Investigators say only that Carrington was in the roadway when he was killed, making it unclear whether he was riding in the traffic lane or crossing the roadway.
It’s also possible that he was riding on the shoulder, and only briefly entered the lane to avoid some obstacle.
Anyone with information is urged to call Huntington Beach traffic investigator Doug Demetre at 714/536-5670 or investigator Vishal Rattanchandani at 714/ 536-5231.
This is at least the sixth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the second that I’m aware of in Orange County.
December 28, 2021 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Man riding bike victim of apparent random shooting on Sunset Beach in Huntington Beach; gunman shot by police
A gunman took aim at a couple riding their bikes at Sunset Beach in Huntington Beach in an apparent random shooting, hitting the man in the back.
However, KNBC-4 reports he first drew attention when he attempted to carjack someone in the area of Pacific Avenue and 7th Street around 12:20 pm, without showing his gun.
He then stepped onto the bike path, facing south, where a witness says he pulled his gun, and stumbling backwards, took aim at the man and women as they rode past, firing at least three times and hitting the man in the back.
The victim immediately fell onto the grass, yelling for someone to call 911.
The gunman, identified only as a man from Norwalk, continued walking to South Pacific and 3rd Street, where he was confronted by police, and shot when he failed to respond to commands.
He was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.
Meanwhile, his victim was hospitalized in stable condition with a single wound that was not expected to be life-threatening.
Heartbreaking news from Huntington Beach, where a man was killed and his elderly wife seriously injured when a driver slammed into their tandem bike Sunday morning.
The Orange County Tribune reports both people were taken to a local hospital, where the 74-year old man died from his injuries; his 82-year old wife was hospitalized, but is expected to survive.
According to investigators, they were apparently riding north on Magnolia when they were struck by a 30-year old woman driving her SUV west on Hamilton.
She remained at the scene, and police did not suspect drug or alcohol use.
Anyone with information is urged to call Huntington Beach Police Traffic Investigators D. Demetre at 714/536-5670, or V. Rattanchandani at 714/536-5231.
This is at least the 40th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth that I’m aware of in Orange County.
The Orange County Register identifies him as Huntington Beach resident John Crouch, while placing the time at 1:38.
Investigators allege Crouch was attempting to cross the six lane highway against the red light when he was run down by a 23-year old Bloomington man, who has not been publicly identified.
Crouch was unresponsive before being taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The driver stayed at the scene, and was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence; no word was given on whether he was suspected of being drunk or stoned
There’s also no word on whether there were any independent witnesses who saw Crouch run the light; however, the intersection was likely to be busy at that hour, which raises the possibility that it was seen by multiple people.
This is at least the 27th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year; however, it’s just the third that I’m aware of in Orange County.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for John Crouch and his loved ones.
Police investigators say Wendy Cendejas apparently fell making a left turn into traffic while riding east on Warner Ave, west of Sceptre Lane, around 6:30 pm on Saturday, October 17th.
She was found by police lying in the roadway, with her bicycle nearby.
Cendejas was taken to UCI Medical Center, where she died the following Monday.
It’s unclear from the description if anyone actually saw her fall. And there’s no information on what may have caused the fall, which could have been anything from simply losing her balance to striking some sort of obstacle in the roadway.
Or her fall could have been caused by a driver in some way.
Anyone with information is urged to call Traffic Investigator D. Demetre of the Huntington Beach Police Department at 714/536-5670.
This is at least the 54th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 13th that I’m aware of in Orange County.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Wendy Cendejas and her loved ones.
As if the news hasn’t been bad enough this weekend, yet another person was killed riding a bicycle, this time in Huntington Beach Friday night.
According to the Daily Pilot, the victim, identified only as a 62-year old homeless man, was struck by a 72-year old driver on deadly PCH near Seapoint Street around 10:20 pm.
The Orange County Register reports he was riding south on PCH when he swerved across the five lane highway, and was hit by the northbound driver.
He died at the scene as a result of serious head injuries.
And no, he wasn’t wearing a helmet. Although we have no way of knowing if his injuries would have been survivable with one.
Or whether it could have made any difference on a road where the 55 mph speed limit is little more than a suggestion, and virtually any crash is a death sentence to anyone not surrounded by a couple tons of glass and steel.
We also don’t know if the victim was without a helmet by choice, or because he didn’t have access to one.
The driver remained at the scene, and police don’t suspect intoxication played a factor.
Anyone with information is urged to call Huntington Beach Police Department traffic investigator Adam Turner at 714/536-5670.
Sadly, too many people will write the victim off as just another homeless person, as if that makes his death any less tragic. Or any less of a loss to his family and friends.
People forced to live on the streets have little enough value in our society when they’re alive. They shouldn’t be forgotten in death, as well.
This is at least the eleventh bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth that I’m aware of in Orange County.
It’s also the fourth bicycling death we’ve learned about in the last two days.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and all his loved ones.
