2010-04-08 - Rider Down, Blackfriars Road

Firstly, the rider would seem to be OK.

Just read this over at yacf and thought it bears repeating.

Last night commute home included me being first response to a traffic incident.

I was heading south bound towards the Elephant and Castle from St Georges Circus, actually we will back up a bit and start my story from me sitting waiting at the junction of Blackfriars Road and St Georges Circus.

As I approached the junction, an ambulance went past, and then I heard a second siren and saw the paramedic bike that was 200 yards behind. My spider senses tingled, and I thought this is going to be interesting. The bike past and I moved onto the junction and I was then cut up by a coach, which I assumed is what triggered my spider sense. I let the coach go and started to cycle up London Road towards the Elephant and Castle.

A few moments later I was overtaking the coach that had stopped in the bus lane, and then I noticed there was a motorcyclist down a few feet in front.
The paramedic motorcyclist I had seen a few seconds earlier. The paramedic was talking to a pedestrian, and while he was lying very still, he was talking. The other casualty was a cyclist, so I headed over to him to make sure he was ok.
Several people where on mobiles to ambulance control, so I called out road names to help direct the response.

The cyclist was mostly bruised and trying to sit up, as he was right out in the middle of the road, and not reporting anything broken, I helped him to the side of the road so we could get traffic moving, and lined up another cyclist to sit and chat to him for a bit as the shock kicked in, before heading back to the motorcyclist to see how he was doing.
By this time, he had started to remove his own helmet at was also trying to sit up.

Which was a result. Moments later we had the first ambulance crew on hand, another motorcyclist who haply parked right in the middle of the road blocking the traffic again, and the chap I was dealing with confirmed that he was basically ok, and that priority should be given to the cyclist.

Shortly later we had helped the motorcyclist to the pavement, where he was then sitting up looking at the cyclist, wondering how the cyclist was also sat up and giving him thumbs up, I am going to be ok hand gestures.

The crash had occurred because the cyclist had seen the ambulance, and then tried to cross the road (on his bike) while obscured by the coach The motorcyclist paramedic was left no option but to hit him full on. The bike was scooped up onto the motorbike, before everyone was spilled onto the road. The motorcyclist was repeatedly surprised that he hadn’t killed the cyclist.

Soon we had another motorcycle paramedic, and an ambulance, to take over, so given there was nothing much more to do, headed for home.
Wondering how on earth it had not ended up being a whole heap more serious.

So remember kids, always watch out for the second emergency vehicle.

And remember not to cross roads on your bike, FFS.

phew lucky escape by the sounds of it. nice work there Killer.

Intrestingly enough, I was hit by a cab in nyc while attempting to move out of the way for an ambulance, and landed right in front of the ambulance.

I refused medical treatment (fucking American healthcare), the bitched at me, and went on their way. The other interesting twist in this story is that the ambulance was being re-directed to manhattan, they are actually based in my neighborhood in queens.

Good man for stoping and giving assistance.

^^^oh hang on - is the story talking about the lights where the cycle lane crosses too?

In which case, feel free to cross on your bike, but open your eyes and ears, FFS :/

Intrestingly enough, I was hit by a cab in nyc while attempting to move out of the way for an ambulance,

I've had something similar happen to me. Got rear ended by a muppet to busy watching an ambulance. I'm now very careful to get out of the way of any potential asshats when the sirens start.

The good thing about being a cyclist is you can usually hear them a lot sooner.

phew lucky escape by the sounds of it. nice work there Killer.

Good man for stoping and giving assistance.

Let me just be clear on this. Last night the highlight if my commute was nearly rear ending a Mondeo because I was a bit distracted approaching a roundabout.

The kudos are due to darkpoint on yacf.co.uk who seems like a fine upstanding citizen. I would have stopped if I had been there but I wasn't, I was in Swindon being a careless twat.

The number of total fails I see when emergency vehicles are present astounds me.

People don't hear or see them - which makes me wonder how they can legally drive.
Pedestrians will STILL run across the road in front of speeding cops and ambos
Cyclists tend to wobble around a bit and hug the left so, no change :)

Let me just be clear on this. Last night the highlight if my commute was nearly rear ending a Mondeo because I was a bit distracted approaching a roundabout.

The kudos are due to darkpoint on yacf.co.uk who seems like a fine upstanding citizen. I would have stopped if I had been there but I wasn't, I was in Swindon being a careless twat.

ah. gotcha. tits or gtfo. or something. as you were.

kudos are due to darkpoint on yacf.co.uk who seems like a fine upstanding citizen.

I thought he sounded pretty disappointed that there wasn't bloodshed.

Mate of mine, couple of years ago, former motorcycle traffic cop, T-boned square on at a road-junction doing only about 20mph using the full kit, lights, sirens the lot, broad day light, as a car pulled out...

"...to see what the noise was all about...?!"

Driving into a traffic cop not good for your driving licence I'm told...... ;-)