Cyclist Killed on U.S. 64 in Iredell County in North Carolina

IREDELL COUNTY, NC- Wbtv.com writes that a driver struck and killed a cyclist on U.S. 64 over the Thanksgiving holiday. The driver, who was operating a pickup truck, fled the scene after the deadly crash.*

The collision occurred in the late evening. Reports indicate the cyclist was traveling eastbound and that the vehicle hit him from behind. The victim was thrown from his bike and into traffic traveling in the opposite direction. A GMC SUV traveling west struck the man. 

The person driving the GMC stopped immediately, but the person in the pickup truck fled the accident scene to the east. 

Police identified the cyclist as a 30-year-old man from Statesville. He died at the scene of the accident. Reports indicate that the victim did not have a helmet on at the time of the crash and that he was wearing dark-colored clothing. 

The victim’s family mourned the loss and expressed their shock to reporters that their loved one could be killed by someone who did not even have the decency to stop and render aid or report the accident. According to family, a problem with the victim’s eyesight meant that he could not get a driver’s license. 

The State Highway Patrol later reported that the pickup truck driver turned himself in several days after the accident and after the police located the vehicle involved in the crash. 

Fleeing the scene of an accident that causes a fatality is a felony offense. Drivers who commit hit-and-run crashes can face years in prison. However, these crashes are on the rise across the United States. Victims are typically pedestrians or other vulnerable road users, such as cyclists. 

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Source:https://www.wbtv.com/2019/12/02/bicyclist-killed-hit-and-run-crash-thanksgiving-iredell-county/ and https://aaafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/18-0058_Hit-and-Run-Brief_FINALv2.pdf