UPDATE, 7/25: PPB says Gad Alon died from, “a significant medical event.”
The Portland Police Bureau announced Wednesday evening that a man who fell from his bicycle while riding in in the Multnomah neighborhood 10 days ago has died from his injuries.
According to police, first responders were called to the intersection of Southwest Capitol Highway and SW Florida Street just before 7:00 am on Saturday, July 6th to help someone who seemed to have fallen off their bicycle. The man, 74-year-old Gad Alon, was taken to the hospital.
In a statement, the PPB said they were not called to the scene because, “there was no indication of a crime or traffic crash involving anyone else.” The PPB Traffic Investigations Unit has since taken on the case and says, “At this point, there is no indication that any drivers were involved.”
Alon died at the hospital Wednesday morning. He’s the third person to die while riding a bicycle in Portland this year.
I’ve asked PPB to share more details about the case in order to better understand Alon’s route and what might have led to his death. Since the investigation just began yesterday, they aren’t able to share which direction he was riding or where his bike and/or body was found when EMS first arrived.
If Alon was going north on SW Capitol Hwy (toward SW Vermont) he would have been going downhill for a block or so before coming to the SW Florida intersection. The bike lane ends abruptly right before that intersection and a curbed sidewalk juts out into the street.
In the southbound direction (toward Multnomah Village), Alon would have been in an uphill, unprotected bike lane as he approached SW Florida.
David Stein, a southwest Portland resident and cycling advocate who has served on the city’s bicycle advisory committee, said this section of SW Multnomah is a good example of why very few people ride in the area. “If you’re going toward Multnomah Village the facility is bad due to the persistent foliage growth blocking the uphill bike lane. Going downhill toward Hillsdale you lose the lane… These low quality routes to destinations are part of what make riding a bicycle in southwest so challenging.”
If you know more about what happened to Gad Alon on July 6th, please contact me. Also share your information with the PPB via crimetips@police.portlandoregon.gov with “Traffic Investigations Unit” and case number 24-178154 in the subject line.
There have been 34 traffic fatalities in Portland so far this year, five fewer than this date in 2022 and 2023.
