Friday, July 25, 2008

Helmet-Less Biker Gets Hit by Car

By Rozanna M. Martinez
Journal Staff Writer
      An afternoon bike ride Thursday landed one man in the hospital after he was struck by a car and hit its windshield.
    A small sedan was traveling east at about 2:30 p.m. on Southern Boulevard at the same time a young man was riding his bicycle east on the bike path along the side of the street, according to Rio Rancho Fire Rescue battalion chief Paul Bearce. The cyclist was crossing Sally Circle, a side street that intersects with Southern, when he was struck by the sedan, which was turning onto Sally. The cyclist was not wearing a helmet, Bearce said.
    "He came off the bike and hit the windshield of the sedan," he said. "He had multiple traumatic injuries. I don't know the extent of his injuries just yet, but they were pretty serious."
    The cyclist's age and other personal information were not immediately known Thursday.
    The accident occurred in front of a Rio Rancho Fire Rescue ambulance that was responding to another call, Bearce said. Emergency personnel in the ambulance witnessed the accident, called it in to dispatch and responded to the scene on Sally.
    The cyclist was taken by ambulance to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, Bearce said.
    No one in the sedan was seriously hurt, he said.
    Four "young ladies" were in the vehicle, according to Bearce.
    One of the females was treated at the scene for small cuts she received on her hand from the broken windshield glass.
    An eastbound lane on Southern was temporarily shut down following the accident, Bearce said.
    Rio Rancho police are investigating the accident, according to police spokesman John Francis.
   

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