MARICOPA COUNTY – One person is dead and one was later injured after a bicyclist and truck driver collided on Tuesday.
According to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), at approximately 9:51 p.m., on January 26, a Toyota Tundra pick-up truck being driven by an as yet unidentified man was traveling eastbound on Buckeye Road toward 99th Avenue. The vehicle collided with a an adult male bicyclist near the median lane of travel about ½ mile west of 99th Avenue.
The driver stated he never saw where the bicyclist came from. The area is very dark with no streetlights and the Sheriff’s Office says it is uncertain if the bicyclist had a light source on his bicycle illuminated at the time of the collision. After the collision between the Toyota and the bicyclist, the bicyclist was lying in the roadway and was runover by an unknown number of other vehicles. None of the other vehicles have been identified.
The bicyclist was pronounced dead on scene. The driver of the Toyota remained at the scene.
Neither speed, nor impairment, are currently being considered factors in this crash.
While bystanders were assisting with the crash, a pedestrian was struck by a white Kia Optima passenger car. The pedestrian was assisting with trying to stop traffic when he was hit by a Kia Optima passenger car traveling westbound on Buckeye Road toward 99th Avenue. The adult female driver of the Kia failed to stop at the scene and never rendered aid. A short time later, the driver of the Kia contacted MCSO to turn herself in.
The Sheriff’s Office is investigating whether impairment and speed were possible factors in this crash.