17-Year-Old Boy On Bicycle Has Crash With SUV In Fitchburg
FITCHBURG (CBS) – A 17-year old Fitchburg boy was in critical condition Thursday night after an accident involving a bicycle and an SUV.
The teen was on the bike and the crash happened at the intersection of Boutelle and St. Bernard Streets shortly after 5 P.M.
Viviana Beltran and her boyfriend came to see the sight of the collision. Her son is the teen's close friend.
"They said, 'mommy, I saw his bike,' and they saw police and stuff so they came running down here," said Viviana Beltran, knows victim.
Fitchburg Police worried about saving the teen, but also spent frantic minutes trying to locate his family.
"It's heart-wrenching. Every police officer down here was taken aback because any of us who have children and there's a bike on the ground and you don't know who that child is," said Fitchburg Police Chief Ernest Martineau.
Beltran's son led police to the teen's home. "They took the police to his house because they didn't know nothing about him," said Beltran.
The teen lives with his grandmother a couple blocks away from the accident scene. He was on his way to the park.
Colin Martin and his friend bike on these streets and vow to be more careful.
"When we're driving we don't really look up these two streets, so I can see how it would be so easy to just get hit or hit a car," said Colin Martin, who lives nearby.
Police are figuring out the details. Witnesses say the teen was biking full speed down the hill on St. Bernard Street and didn't stop at the stop sign slamming in the SUV. After the crash, the driver of the SUV stopped.
Those who know the teen say he had just started riding a bicycle.
"Not too long ago he learn, a few months ago he started enjoying it. He like it," said Beltran.
Now they are praying he'll be able to ride again. "Praying to God," said Beltran.
The teen was taken by helicopter to UMass Medical Center. His grandmother is with him, as are other family members and people from his church.
The driver remained on scene.
