(Image: Google Street View)
A man reportedly received life-threatening head injuries while biking on Southwest Barnes Road Friday afternoon, just west of the Washington/Multnomah County line on the street that is known, in Multnomah County, as Burnside.
Washington County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release late Friday that David Garcia, age 43, of Cedar Mill, was pedaling westbound on Barnes, possibly in or near the right turn lane, when an SUV turned left in front of him onto Southwest Miller Road.
“The vehicle believed that he was turning,” sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Bob Ray Ray said in an interview with KGW.
There are no bike lanes on Barnes. Eastbound cars turning left at this intersection seem to have an arrow signal, so it’s not clear from Ray’s initial description what would have led to the left-turn conflict.
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KGW reported that a “multi-vehicle crash” happened “around 1:45 p.m. at the intersection of Barnes Road and Southwest Miller Road.” Here’s a tweet from the station’s news photographer:
A bicyclist & a car collide @ SW Miller & Barnes Rds. The cyclist is at the hospital. The driver on scene. @KGWNews pic.twitter.com/3sWU2EAHwO
— Steven Redlin (@StevenRedlin) May 22, 2015
In his video interview with KGW, Ray said “he was riding what we classify as a street-type bike, so they’re pretty fast bicyclists and this is a pretty steep hill. So witnesses told us that he did have considerable speed going.”
Update 5/23: Here’s the official release from the sheriff’s office:
Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a crash where a vehicle and a bicyclist collided. The bicyclist suffered life-threatening injuries.
On May 22, 2015, at 1:45 p.m., Washington County Sheriff’s Deputies were called to SW Miller Road at SW Barnes Road in the community of Cedar Mill concerning a traffic crash between a bicyclist and a sport utility vehicle.
Sheriff’s Deputies arrived and found David Garcia, 43, from Cedar Mill, unconscious in the roadway. He incurred life-threatening injuries. Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue treated Mr. Garcia prior to transporting him to Emanuel Hospital.
Sheriff’s Deputies learned that a 1988 Ford Bronco had been driven by David Warren, 64, from Hillsboro, eastbound on SW Barnes Road. Deputies found that David Garcia was riding his bicycle westbound on SW Barnes Road. Witnesses told investigators that he was riding his bicycle at a high speed and continued straight while in the right turn lane at SW Miller Road. Mr. Warren turned his Bronco left onto SW Miller Road into the path of Mr. Garcia.
David Warren remained at the crash scene and cooperated with investigators, he was not injured.
The Washington County Crash Analysis Reconstruction Team responded to assist with diagrams and processing evidence. The intersection was closed for approximately three hours.
Investigators will complete their analysis of this crash in the coming weeks. No citations have been issued.
We’ll be continuing to follow this story as we learn more.
UPDATE 3:10 pm, 5/27: Police have cited the driver. Here’s the official statement:
Investigators determined that David Warren, the driver of the Bronco, committed violations that were contributing factors in the May 22, 2015 crash with David Garcia. Yesterday, Mr. Warren was issued citations for Dangerous Left Turn and Careless Driving. His court date is scheduled for June 17, 2015