On Friday, at about 5:40 a.m., four vehicles and a motorcycle were involved in a collision that critically injured one man; incredibly, it was not the operator of the motorcycle who was injured.
A motorcycle sustained braking system failure causing the motorcycle to lay onto its side and throw the operator onto the roadway eastbound along I-10 near 40th Street. Multiple vehicles swerved abruptly in order to avoiding colliding with the operator and the motorcycle. Three vehicles stopped during this time and were rear-ended by a commercial dump truck. The driver of one of those vehicles was in the process of exiting his vehicle or already outside of it when the movement of the vehicles during the rear-end collision struck him.
That driver was unresponsive at the scene and transported to a local hospital in serious condition. No other injuries were reported, including the motorcycle operator.
The roadway was partially restricted for several hours while State Troopers completed the collision investigation.
Highway Patrol Sgt. Lawrence Arden said, “Anything can happen in a moments notice, we remind drivers to reduce distractions while driving to increase their awareness and to reduce the potential of being involved in a collision.”