Woman Crashes into Two Bicyclists, Killing One
A woman ran into two bicyclists on Monday, June 4th, in Galveston. One of the bicyclists died in the accident.
Details of the Accident
According to authorities, the driver made a turn onto a street where she hit two of five bicyclists that were riding down 69th Street towards the seawall.
The two bicyclists that were injured were taken to University of Texas Medical Branch, where one of the victims passed away. The victim had only been in the US for three weeks and was a recent graduate from the Galveston Island Beach Patrol lifeguard academy.
The driver of the vehicle showed signs of intoxication and admitted to having drunk one adult beverage. She was charged with intoxication assault but that could be upgraded since the victim died.
According to authorities, the area where the accident took place is dimly lit, and the bicyclists did not have any lights on. They did, however, have reflectors.
A Growing Concern
According to a study conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , 5,376 U.S. pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents in 2015. This adds up to about one crash-related pedestrian death every 1.6 hours. Additionally:
- Almost 129,000 pedestrians were treated in the ER for non-fatal injuries.
- Pedestrians are 1.5 more times likely to die than a passenger vehicle occupant.
- Higher vehicle speeds increase the risks of hitting a pedestrian and govern the severity of their injury.
- Most pedestrian fatalities happen in urban areas, non-intersection locations, and/or at night.
Another 2015 report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) covered statistics regarding bicyclists in particular and they are sobering.
- 818 bicyclists were killed that year.
- Approximately 15 people per day passed away due to this type of accident.
- These two statistics are equal to 17.7 percent of the 35,092 total of U.S. fatalities.
- In terms of gender, 88 percent of bicyclists that perished were male.
- As for locations, 71 percent of bicyclists fatalities occurred in urban areas.
- Between 6 and 8:59 p.m. is when 20 percent of bicyclist fatalities occurred.
- Texas is the third largest state in terms of bicyclist fatalities that year with 50.
Wearing the right protective gear could be what saves your life or your loved one’s. If you are going out for a bike ride:
- Wear a bike helmet.
- Wear fluorescent clothing during the day and if you must— although we wouldn’t recommend riding at this time — wear retro-reflective clothing at night.
- Make sure your bike has a white light attached in the front and a red light in the rear.
- Ride with traffic.
- Watch out for road hazards like potholes, puddles, or even dogs.
- Obey all traffic laws and yield when it is appropriate.
- Stay alert and be predictable at all times.
- Look before making a turn.
If you or someone you love was injured, or died, in a pedestrian-vehicle accident, contact the Houston personal injury lawyers at Lapeze & Johns today.
With over 35 years of legal experience and a 98 percent success rate, our Houston car accident attorneys have the ability to fight and win the compensation you deserve.
Information and image pulled from abc13.com.
