Merritt Island motorcyclist killed in 4-vehicle wrong way crash near Bithlo, troopers say

All lanes since reopened

Merritt Island motorcyclist killed in 4-vehicle wrong way crash; East Colonial Drive shut down near Bithlo on Sunday, May 8, 2022. (Copyright 2022 by WKMG ClickOrlando - All rights reserved.)

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A motorcyclist was killed and three other drivers were injured early Sunday morning in a head-on, wrong-way crash near Bithlo, forcing closures on East Colonial Drive in both directions, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Troopers were dispatched at 12:37 a.m. to the crash, first reported as occurring at Lansing Street. By the afternoon, more than 12 hours later, all lanes had been reopened.

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A Dodge Challenger — driven by a 43-year-old Oviedo man — was traveling westbound in the inside, eastbound lane of Colonial Drive as it approached two motorcycles and a sedan headed eastbound, according to a crash report. At 12:29 a.m., the front of the Challenger struck one of the motorcycles before hitting the two other vehicles head-on, troopers said.

A 29-year-old Merritt Island man driving the second motorcycle to be hit was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the report. A 63-year-old Melbourne man driving the other motorcycle and a 52-year-old Cocoa Beach man driving the sedan were hospitalized with serious and minor injuries respectively, troopers said. It was unknown at the time of this report if the motorcyclists were wearing helmets.

The Oviedo man remained on scene with minor injuries, the report said.

Troopers said the crash is still being investigated.


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