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SF Chronicle Graphics, Nextzen, OpenStreetMap

As more people turn to cycling amidst the pandemic 30-year-old Devlin O’Connor killed in San Francisco collision after someone opened a car door without looking

Accident location
May 29, 2020 by Jeremy LaCroix

A bicyclist was killed in San Francisco on Friday morning after a person inside a parked car opened their door, which hit and ejected the cyclist into oncoming traffic, officials said.

The victim was a 30-year-old man, according to San Francisco police, but officials have not yet identified him. The crash occurred at 7:29 a.m. on Frederick Street near Williard Street at the southeast corner of Golden Gate Park by Kezar Stadium, police said.

delvino'connor.jpeg

Coworkers set up a gofundme site for Devlins wife & family

Devlin O'Connor Memorial Fund

Officers responding to a report of a vehicle collision involving a bicycle found the cyclist down in the road, police said. He was taken to a hospital where he died.

All parties involved in the incident remained at the scene and are cooperating with investigators, authorities said.

Supervisor Dean Preston, who represents the Cole Valley neighborhood where the crash happened, said police told him that the cyclist was struck by an oncoming vehicle after being ejected from the bicycle when the car door opened.

He said the tragedy underscores the need for San Francisco officials to move as quickly as possible to achieve its Vision Zero goal of reducing traffic deaths. Many more people are biking during the COVID-19 pandemic for exercise and transportation, he said.

The street where the crash occurs does not have a protected bike lane, Preston said.

“This is what folks cycle in fear of, is a collision with a vehicle or a car door opening,” Preston said. “From the information we have, it sounds like that’s the nightmare that occured this morning.”


Anna Bauman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.
Email: 
anna.bauman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @abauman2


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May 29, 2020 /Jeremy LaCroix /Source
doored, cycling, transportation, safety
The fatal crash scene where bicyclist Marcus Ewing was killed.

The fatal crash scene where bicyclist Marcus Ewing was killed.

Open car door kills Manhatten bicyclist Marcus Ewing, 27, cycling advocacy group says this is all too common

Accident Location
October 23, 2010 by Jeremy LaCroix

A biker was killed Friday when a Manhattan driver opened a car door and knocked the cyclist into the path of an oncoming truck, police said.

Marcus Ewing, 27, died at Harlem Hospital a short time after the 8 a.m. accident at E. 120th St. and Third Ave.

The force from the sudden impact launched Ewing, of Harlem, in front of an oncoming Boar's Head truck driven by Robert Nunnenkamp, 51, of Port Jefferson, L.I., sources said.

The driver of the car, 44-year-old Antonio Cobb, and Nunnenkamp remained on the scene.

Marcus Ewing

Marcus Ewing

No criminal charges are expected to be filed. Nunnenkamp was given five citations, including no audible alarm and no driver inspection sheet.

Cobb was issued one summons for unsafely exiting a vehicle.

Both men passed Breathalyzer tests at the scene.

Biking advocacy group Transportation Alternatives said fatalities caused by "dooring" are all-too-common.

"At least three people have been killed so far this year because of it," said Caroline Samponaro, director of bicycle advocacy.

"East Harlem has some of the highest rates of bike commuting," she said, adding that upper Manhattan is "in dire need of quality bike infrastructure."


October 23, 2010 /Jeremy LaCroix
cycling, safety, cardoor
20100520_095723_oakland_bike_al-e1475525633924.jpg

Oakland Bicyclist dies in collision with AC Transit bus after having been aboard the same bus he was hit by moments before the accident.

Accident Location
May 20, 2010 by Jeremy LaCroix

A bicyclist trying to avoid a collision was hit and killed when he was run over by an AC Transit bus Wednesday afternoon, police said.

The accident occurred a little after 4:30 p.m. on MacArthur Boulevard near Patterson Avenue in Oakland, said AC Transit spokesman Clarence Johnson.

The cyclist and a bus on the NX line were traveling in the same direction when the cyclist apparently tried to steer away from a car door as it was opening. He ended up striking the door and bounced off it into traffic. The bus drove over him, said Oakland Police Department spokesman Jeff Thomason. The victim was taken by ambulance to a hospital, where he died.

He was identified by the Alameda County Medical Examiner's Office as Erik Fitzpatrick, 35, of Oakland. 

The bus driver said she was unaware of what happened and drove for about a block until she was alerted - perhaps by a boarding passenger - that the cyclist was down, Johnson said. 

He said the driver was distraught. As is policy, the veteran driver will be tested automatically for drugs and alcohol, but those substances did not appear to be a factor, Thomason said.


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