The 40-year-old Langley driver of a dirt bike involved in Thursday’s fatal crash is said to have been travelling at “extremely high rates of speed” and passing on the shoulder before crashing into the side of a pickup truck.
Next of kin has been notified and victim support services have been helping the family involved, said Langley RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Holly Marks.
At this time, the B.C. Coroner hasn’t released his name. It also isn’t known yet if drugs or alcohol played a role. Police are saying that the deceased was prohibiting from driving. He was wearing a helmet. A comment on The Times website indicated the man was “troubled.”
Langley RCMP Traffic Services is continuing their investigation into the collision that closed off the intersection of 232 Street and 72 Avenue for most of the day on Thursday.
Multiple witnesses remained at the scene to provide police with their account of the collision and the events just prior.
The first call to police was made shortly after 1 p.m. Witnesses said the blue dirt bike was travelling northbound on 232 Street at an extremely high rate of speed and had been passing vehicles on the right shoulder, said Marks.
The pickup truck was stopped at the stop sign on 72 Avenue, facing east.
The truck proceeded from the stop sign when it was hit by the dirt bike on the passenger side, where the box joins the cab. It’s likely the occupants of the truck wouldn’t have seen the bike coming. At the time, rain was coming down hard and visibility was poor.
The two occupants of the pickup truck weren’t injured and remained at the scene.
The operator of the dirt bike was taken by BC Ambulance Service to hospital, however he later passed away.
There still remains some question as to the ownership of the dirt bike. However police have confirmed it was not insured, nor registered.
Some people who witnessed the crash rushed to provide medical assistance to the injured man. One person even provided CPR before an ambulance arrived.
Police would like to speak to one woman who provided medical assistance but either didn’t speak to police or perhaps, as an oversight, wasn’t identified by officers at the time.
She is described as being short with blonde hair. She is asked to contact Langley RCMP, as is anyone else who witnessed the crash but hasn’t spoken to police. Langley RCMP can be contacted at 604-532-3200.