2011 Cyclist fatalities

[greyhoundtom]

By the looks of the damage on the bike it was a straight head on. The reported severe head injuries makes you wonder if he was wearing a helmet?

[damhooligan]

By the looks of the damage on the bike it was a straight head on. The reported severe head injuries makes you wonder if he was wearing a helmet?

Why do you wonder this ??

I would wonder why the accident happened in the first place and how it could have been avoided.

[zero]

It looks as described to me, a cross by a high riding vehicle thats gone over the bike. Head ons usually burst the tube and snap or square the rim.

It primarily could have been avoided by the bicycle rider not running the stop sign, but realistically the rider ought to have been visible fairly early, its an open area around the intersection, and any sort of cautionary slow would have probably prevented a fatality.

[CommuRider]

A CRASH near Ipswich in which a cyclist was killed has caused long delays for motorists on the Warrego Highway.

A man riding a bicycle was killed in a collision with a truck about 1pm on the highway at Muirlea.

One Brisbane-bound lane of the highway was closed between Muirlea and Kholo while the forensic crash unit investigated the wreck.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/quee ... 6069618417

[CommuRider]

Sadly, a friend of a poster here: Malcolm Kemp. RIP

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=41249

[bp2]

I had a look at the Qld Road Rules last night and found there is no requirement to give way to bicycles when turning left off a main road.
This is the result and I am surprised it does not happen more often.

I think some road rules require updating.

[CommuRider]

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/death ... 1hx7l.html



The van driver was released yesterday without charge after helping police. The State Coroner is investigating the accident.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/pro-cyclist-struck-and-killed-on-beach-road-20110723-1hugw.html?from=age_sb

[wellington_street]

Sounds like a pretty unfortunate incident - from what has been reported it is difficult to see whether either driver was at fault. Two drivers/riders changing lanes at the same time is always a risk on the roads.

[Oxford]

Sounds like a pretty unfortunate incident - from what has been reported it is difficult to see whether either driver was at fault. Two drivers/riders changing lanes at the same time is always a risk on the roads.

not trying to lay blame but if the report is accurate this paragraph says enough:

Mr Cornish died after he rode around a parked car and, simultaneously, a van travelling behind him changed lanes to avoid a vehicle ahead turning right. The van hit Mr Cornish, throwing him from his bike.

if there are parked cars you need to be especially vigilant and either stay in the lane without the parked cars or be constantly evaluating your environment (particularly the door zone). naturally until we see the findings of the coroner there is nothing definitive, but I see so many riders either riding in the door zone or moving in and out of lanes with parked vehicles I'm surprised this does not happen more often.

[stanevelyn]

The government is obviously not concerned about road safety. To them cyclists don't matter. (Until election time, when false promises are generated). When will they start governing and reduce the speed limits on all our streets and highways to a speed limit manageable by motorists who are obviously incapable of controlling their vehicles?

When will this government sanctioned carnage of cyclists on our roads end? Perhaps when the responsible ministers start answering to criminal charges caused by their incompetance, inaction, or disinterest in constructing roadways,and amending road laws, and policies. (They have insulated themselves well against any accountability)

My sincerest condolences to the families of all cyclists that have passed.

[diggler]

post deleted

not relevant

[CommuRider]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaki ... 6109492494

Hit by and sucked underneath a truck.

Police said he had been riding his bike down Webster Rd to a school bus stop when his bike and a truck travelling west on Range Rd collided.

Caleb Woodland

http://www.dailymercury.com.au/story/20 ... ck-sarina/

[CommuRider]

http://www.qt.com.au/story/2011/08/06/f ... agic-loss/

Mrs [Narelle] Dobinson, 60, died on July 31, a week after the bike she was riding and a car collided at an intersection in Amberley.

[Baldy]

What is the purpose of this thread?

Seems like nothing more than fodder for some peoples morbid curiosity.

I know that if I lost a loved one to an accident, I would not appreciate ill informed speculation about how it could/should have been avoided.

[CommuRider]

What is the purpose of this thread?.

Pretty self explanatory I would have thought. It's to account and keep count how many Australian cyclists are being killed this year and that they are real people behind the statistics.

If you read my first post in this thread I had my misgivings about starting this thread because of its morbidity but since no one really opposed it I continued and If the mods thought it was inappropriate I would have gladly had it deleted.

[find_bruce]

What is the purpose of this thread?

Seems like nothing more than fodder for some peoples morbid curiosity.

I know that if I lost a loved one to an accident, I would not appreciate ill informed speculation about how it could/should have been avoided.

It's an interesting question - if you lost a loved one, what would you appreciate ?

To me, the major reason for conversations such as this one is that they are not just statistics, but people who leave behind family and friends who loved them.

You are entitled to your opinion and if you find yourself in the unfortunate situation where the person who died is someone you loved, I will respect your right to grieve in your own way. You understand however that your opinion is not universal

On Friday I will be going to the funeral for a friend's daughter. She wasn't a cyclist, but she was killed in a car crash. The following, word for word, is an email I received from her father which makes the point more eloquently than I could

Catherine Elizabeth Taylor, my daughter and a 24 year old mother, was killed at approximately 7.28am on Friday 5th August on her way to work.

I deliberately use the word "killed", rather than just "died".

A 20 year old male with a suspended licence, driving a manual V8 Commodore, lost control after exiting a roundabout. He hit a median strip (witnesses say the Commodore became airborne) and collided head-on with Catherine. She died instantly.

The driver of the Commodore was uninjured, but taken to the local hospital for drug and urine tests. A number of serious criminal charges are pending, including "Dangerous Driving Occasioning Death" which can carry a ten year gaol sentence.

Even before his licence was suspended, the driver of the other vehicle was not licensed to drive a manual V8 car. Witnesses at the scene report hearing an engine revving hard immediately before the incident. Clearly the driver lost control in a vehicle more powerful than he could handle, and as a result killed a young innocent mother.

Obviously the family is quite distraught about this tragic loss of someone we loved so dearly. Her three year old daughter will take quite some time to understand what has happened to her mommy. Some members of the family are very angry that it has happened, but anger is not why I am writing this.

We would like all drivers reading this, whether young or old, to take note of the possible consequences of their poor driving decisions and limited skills.

We would want all parents of young drivers to exercise more care and control in relation to the cars their sons and daughters drive, and under what conditions. Someone gave this young man the keys to the powerful V8 manual car. Let's hope that some other parent will refuse to hand over the car keys to their child.

Please discuss this tragic accident amongst yourselves, your family and friends. Open discussion about the risks and results of poor driver education and behaviour might help save a life, and then Catherine's death will not have been totally in vain.

We can't bring Catherine back. Let's all work together to minimise future tragic and pointless losses.

Colin and Carol Dodds (parents)
Cameron and Zara-Addison (husband and daughter)
Carlie and Chris (sister and brother)

[CommuRider]

http://www.qt.com.au/story/2011/08/06/family-and-friends-mourn-tragic-loss/

Mrs [Narelle] Dobinson, 60, died on July 31, a week after the bike she was riding and a car collided at an intersection in Amberley.

Follow up to this one:

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-na ... 1ixxq.html

"A US navy officer who was charged with dangerous driving after he hit and killed a cyclist will not be prosecuted in Australia. Narelle Dobinson, 60, died when her bike was hit by a utility at Willowbank, near RAAF Amberley, southwest of Ipswich, on July 24. Police later charged the navy officer at the wheel with dangerous driving, Attorney-General Robert McClelland said.

But the man will be allowed to face a military investigation by his own country after a court ruled the accident happened "in the course of official duties".

Under an agreement between the two nations the US has the right to deal with its officers who commit a crime while carrying out official work, Mr McClelland said. The attorney-general said he signed a certificate confirming the officer was involved in official duties at the time of the incident "based on advice I received".The Ipswich Magistrates Court on Wednesday reached the same conclusion.

"I have been assured by the United States government that the issue of criminal liability will be fully investigated," Mr McClelland said in a statement."In particular, I have been assured that if criminal wrongdoing is uncovered, the officer could face serious charges under the US Uniform Code of Military Justice." The potential penalties are similar to those he would have faced if prosecuted in Australia, he said. "The US has assured me they will ... keep the Australian government informed of developments," Mr McClelland said.

[CommuRider]

http://www.police.nsw.gov.au/news/lates ... YWxsPTE%3D

A cyclist has died in hospital following a collision with a bus in Lilyfield yesterday afternoon. About 2:30pm, Saturday 20 August 2011, a 54-year-old man was riding his pushbike in a westerly direction along Moore Street when he lost control while negotiating a bend. The man crossed the median strip and collided with a bus travelling east on Moore Street. He was treated at the scene by paramedics and taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital where he died.

[CommuRider]

A 10-year-old boy has died in a bike accident in central Queensland this morning. Police say the boy was riding his bike on Grasstree Beach Road, near Sarina, south of Mackay, when he was hit by a car about 8:00am (AEST). He was taken to hospital, but died a short time later. It is the second fatal accident involving a cyclist in Sarina in a month.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-26/b ... nt/2857168

[cp123]

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/cy ... 6126235354

[CommuRider]

Horrible month for QLD cyclists

[cp123]

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/na ... 6129801535

[CommuRider]

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/national/cyclist-dies-in-werrington-western-sydney/story-e6frfku9-1226129801535

They discovered a man, believed to be aged in his 40s, unconscious and suffering severe head injuries

Hmmm...hit and run? Or more prosaic like inner ear infection?

[Oxford]

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/national/cyclist-dies-in-werrington-western-sydney/story-e6frfku9-1226129801535

They discovered a man, believed to be aged in his 40s, unconscious and suffering severe head injuries

Hmmm...hit and run? Or more prosaic like inner ear infection?

No wonder we have problems with motorists. As the report says police do not know if a vehicle was involved. Last I looked a bicycle is a vehicle, so by my understanding a vehicle was involved. The question should be was a second vehicle involved.

[CommuRider]

http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/st ... n-tragedy/

A VICTORIAN couple's holiday ended in tragedy yesterday with the death of a 66-year-old cyclist.

The Wangaratta woman and her husband were enjoying the last days of a holiday at Dicky Beach when disaster struck about 3.30pm on Monday. The woman went for a bike ride and was struck by a car at Pelican Waters, on the roundabout at Pelican Waters Bvd and Sir Joseph Banks Dr.

She was taken to Nambour General Hospital with critical injuries. The woman's fight for life ended early yesterday morning. Her family arrived on the Sunshine Coast yesterday to be with her devastated husband before they return to Victoria today.

The driver of the car, a 31-year-old Caloundra woman, was not injured. The cause of the crash is not known but sources said early signs indicate the cyclist was already on the roundabout at the time of the collision.

The Victorian woman is the first cyclist to be killed on Sunshine Coast roads this year in a road toll which stands at 15.