Another California motorcycle accident involving a U-turn
Last month, this blog recounted the story of a motorcycle accident involving a delivery truck making a U-turn in Cathedral City. The California Highway Patrol says that an Oroville man has now died in a motorcycle accident involving a second vehicle making a U-turn. The Oroville bike wreck took the life of a 19-year-old man on Kelly Ridge in Oroville.
Police say a 61-year-old Oroville man pulled over in his sports utility vehicle while traveling north on Kelly Ridge, looked for oncoming traffic and then attempted to make the U-turn. The driver told the CHP that he had pulled completely off the road before turning around. He says he did not see any traffic before he made the U-turn.
The CHP says the 19-year-old motorcyclist southbound on Kelly Ridge and crashed into the SUV, which had made it across both lanes. The rider was ejected from his bike and came to a rest roughly 80 feet from the point of the initial impact with the SUV, according to law enforcement.
Emergency personnel arrived and administered cardio-pulmonary resuscitation to the biker at the scene of the accident. The rider reportedly was wearing a motorcycle helmet; however authorities say the motorcyclist suffered major injuries in the wreck. Emergency crews took the rider to Oroville Hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Law enforcement opened an investigation into the fatal crash. Law enforcement has not yet determined the facts surrounding the accident, but the CHP says the motorcyclist's speed may have been a factor in the crash.
Source: Oroville Mercury-Register, "Crash into turning SUV kills Oroville man," Barbara Arrigoni, Dec. 10, 2011
