A motorcycle officer with the California Highway Patrol got into an accident that left his bike smashed and lying on the interstate. His injuries were so bad that, even though an ambulance showed up at the crash site, the emergency crews had to call in a helicopter. They landed it right on the highway and airlifted the officer from the scene.
The good news is that his injuries are not thought to be life-threatening, and he should recover in time.
The accident happened on U.S. 101, in the westbound lanes. So far, the authorities have not released the cause of the accident, other than saying that the bike impacted the freeway divider during the incident. Reports did claim that the officer suffered both broken bones and significant scrapes and bruises.
In a picture shared by the CHP, the bike is lying on its side with the ambulance behind it. A stretcher sits near the back of the ambulance. Behind that, the helicopter is on the ground, sitting in the middle of the freeway, where all traffic has been stopped. While authorities attended to the man and cleaned up the wreckage, that traffic stoppage stretched on for miles.
Motorcycle riders, whether they ride for work or just for pleasure, face high risks in an accident. Even small mistakes by another driver can lead to a crash. For instance, if a driver doesn’t see your bike and merges into your lane, you could swerve to avoid the crash and impact a freeway divider or even ride into oncoming traffic. It all happens very quickly.
If you get involved in such an accident, you need to make sure you know what rights you have to compensation.