Bicyclist Critically Injured After He Was Hit By a Pickup

A bicyclist was hit by a pickup truck and vaulting him fifty feet leaving him in critical condition. Witnesses at the scene say the bicylist was riding his bike near 16th and Jerome and all of a sudden jumped off the curb and into the roadway. The pickup, a 2000 Toyota, extra cab, which was traveling south bound on 16th attempted to avoid the bicyclist, however he was unsuccessful. When Yakima Police arrived the bicyclist was lying in the southbound lanes of N. 16th Avenue. He suffered severe head trauma and was transported to Yakima Regional Hospital. Preliminary investigation indicate the bicyclist was the cause of the investigation. However the Yakima Police Departments Traffic Division is investigating the collision. The driver of the pickup, 53 year-old Jesus Chavez of Yakima was not cited.