View Full Version : Septemeber-October Three Cyclist Killed Portland-Seattle


borregokid
11-06-2007, 07:04 AM
Three cyclists were killed in about a 30 day span in Portland and Seattle. The three cyclist were all killed in the same way by large 54,000 GVW trucks making right turns into them at intersections. The classic "right hook". The deaths I am sure were very gruesome with the cyclist head being run over either by the front or rear wheels.

The first death was Bryce Lewis on Sept 8 who pulled even with a dumptruck coming down a hill along Eastlake in Seattle. Lewis was riding a "fixie" but it wouldnt have mattered as the truck made a right turn and Lewis probably had pulled into a blind spot.
Heres a link for more.
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=322254

The second fatality was in Portland on Oct 11 when a woman cyclist and a cement truck were stopped at an intersection. The truck turned right and the cyclist went straight and was immediately struck and ran over.

The third fatality was also in Portland on October 23 and occured in a fashion similar to the Seattle fatality on Sept 8 when a cyclist traveling at a pretty good clip pulled even with a garbage truck at an intersection. The garbage truck made a right turn into the cyclist
crushing the cyclist. The cyclist was 31 years old.

None of the dirivers of the trucks have been cited. The accidents are examples of what happens when the operators of two "vehicles" both not paying attention meet at the same place and time. I think a couple of these collisions also had bike lanes which might be a false sense of security. Not paying attention is how a lot of accidents happen.