One of the truisms in life is that one event leads to another. Unfortunately, that holds true of motor vehicle accidents as well, including motorcycle accidents. A recent example involved a California woman, 51, who died when the motorcycle on which she was a passenger was hit at the scene of a prior accident.
The fatal collision that took the woman’s life happened while she was on riding on the back of a 2008 Harley-Davidson driven by a man, 62. They were riding along Ortega Highway, also known as Highway 74. It’s a very popular road for motorcyclists on weekends.
Just before 11 a.m., the motorcyclist and passenger were stopped in the westbound lane because authorities were dealing with a prior motorcycle accident just west of El Cariso Village. Shortly thereafter, two other motorcycles approached — a 2015 Yamaha, going between 45 and 55 mph, and a 2018 Duncan, going 62 mph, according to the California Highway Patrol (CHP).
The Yamaha and the Duncan braked when they saw the stopped traffic at the scene of the original accident. The Harley-Davidson with the woman and man on it had already stopped. Unfortunately, either the Yamaha or the Duncan didn’t apply their brakes soon enough, because one of them hit the side of the Harley-Davidson. That resulted in the fatal injury to the woman, who died at the scene.
Many details about the accident are still under investigation. It will take time to determine exactly what happened and who was at fault. In accidents like this, when fault is determined, the survivors of the deceased accident victim can pursue damages on her behalf.
