By Canadian Press

Driver ticketed after insecure load of lumber hits B.C. cyclist on Sea-to-Sky

Aug 4, 2020 | 5:06 PM

SQUAMISH, B.C. — A Vancouver man is nursing serious injuries while RCMP say the driver of the truck whose load knocked him off his bicycle has been ticketed.

A statement from Squamish Traffic Services confirms the cyclist was hit when a pick-up truck with an insecure load passed him Monday on the Sea-to-Sky Highway near Lions Bay, B.C.

Police say the truck had a load of lumber in its bed, with the longer lengths protruding above the cab of the pick-up, and the strap holding the load steady appeared to have broken.

The load was hanging well over the right side of the vehicle when 45-year-old cyclist Todd Nickel says he was hit from behind, breaking his clavicle, scapula and eight ribs and puncturing a lung.

The police statement says the driver was located and issued a $196 ticket for driving without consideration and a $288 ticket for having an insecure cargo, but those fines will only apply if there is a conviction.

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In a social media post on Tuesday, Nickel says he won’t need surgery for his broken scapula but his punctured lung is still “dicey,” although he’s hoping to be discharged Wednesday.

“I haven’t heard from the driver, but I’m not surprised,” Nickel writes, adding he is “weaning off the epidural.”

“I’m sure he got a ticket and then carried on his way, which is infuriating.”

Another cyclist was hit by the same insecure load, police say, but that cyclist continued on and has not spoken with RCMP.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2020.

The Canadian Press