RSS51-Year-Old Cyclist Killed in Brevard County Crash
In Brevard County this past Thursday, a 2002 Chevy pickup truck driving south on US-1 across the St. Sebastian River Bridge collided with a bicycle headed north on the same highway. The cyclist, 59-year-old David Smith, a resident of Micco, was riding along US-1 and, according to the report, was on the white line painted on the highway’s border. The collision between the bicycle and the car was almost head-on, with the front right corner of the pickup colliding with the front tire of the bicycle, and caused Smith and his bike to collide with the concrete wall dividing the highway’s southbound shoulder from the city’s sidewalk. The bicycle was ultimately propelled over the wall and onto the sidewalk itself.
When the emergency response teams arrived, they pronounced Smith dead at the scene. The driver of the Chevy, 21-year-old Tyler Gates, a Vero Beach resident, was uninjured in the accident. The Florida Highway Patrol is still investigating the situation and looking into the claims that Smith was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.
While emergency response teams examined the scene of the accident, the portion of road where US-1 and Main Street meet, around the Indian River and Brevard County line, was closed from 5:20 p.m. until the teams decided they had extracted all the information that they could. The accident itself is estimated to have happened around 4:57 p.m., right when rush hour begins to reach its peak. As of this moment, no formal charges have been brought against Gates, and it is unknown what exactly the conditions were under which the accident happened.
Circumstances such as this one, where a cyclist is killed by the driver of a car, are challenging to assess right away. Because the driver of the car is operating something so much more powerful than the bicycle, it often seems that the culpability lies primarily with them. However, there are certainly circumstances under which the cyclist’s own irresponsibility can cause the incident to take place. On the road, everyone is responsible to be aware of each other and everyone else. All it takes is one moment of negligence for irreparable damage or death to occur.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a Brevard County bicycle accident, contact the Law Offices of James O. Cunningham, P.A. today at 877-FL-INJURY (877-354-6587).
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James O. Cunningham
Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.
Mr. Cunningham is an excellent and knowledgeable attorney.