Texas Department of Public Safety troopers are investigating a fatality crash on FM 787, about three miles east of Rye, Texas.
The preliminary crash investigation indicates on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021, at approximately 11:06 a.m., a 2014 Ford Escape was traveling east on Farm-to-Market 787 when the driver failed to control their speed and struck three-pedal cyclists.
The driver of the Ford, 66-year-old Michael J. Weaver of Votaw, Texas, was not injured.
The rider of bicycle #1, 51-year-old Kent Joshua Wospeka of South Hamilton, Mass., was airlifted to St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont, Texas, in critical condition. On Oct. 31, at approximately 1:20 p.m., Wospeka was pronounced deceased by Dr. Darioush Kavoseour.
The rider of bicycle #2, 59-year-old Barbara Anne Ferrell of Santa Rosa, Calif., was airlifted to Kingwood Emergency Hospital in Kingwood, Texas, in serious condition.
The rider of bicycle #3, 54-year-old Elizabeth Anne O’Brien of South Hamilton, Mass., was Airlifted to St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont, Texas, in serious condition.
This is an ongoing investigation, and there is no additional information available for release at this time.
How many more cyclists have to be hit by vehicles in Texas before we have state laws protecting cyclists?