A Blaine motorcyclist succumbed to his injuries less than a week after he was hit by a truck whose driver didn’t see him at the intersection of Blaine and Anderson roads in Birch Bay on June 6.
William R. Fleischer, 58, died at St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham on June 11, Washington State Patrol (WSP) trooper Kelsey Harding said.
The driver of a gray 1998 Ford F150 failed to yield at a stop sign as he turned from the eastbound lane of Anderson Road onto northbound Blaine Road around 3 p.m. June 6. The truck hit the front of Fleischer's black 2004 Harley Davidson motorcycle driving southbound on Blaine Road, according to the WSP report.
WSP initially told The Northern Light in an email that the truck’s driver had failed to stop at the stop sign. However, the WSP investigation found the truck’s driver stopped at the stop sign but failed to see Fleischer. The truck’s driver will receive a ticket for failing to yield, Harding said, adding that the driver’s actions don’t meet the criteria for a criminal charge of negligent driving.
Fleischer was not wearing a helmet that complied with U.S. Department of Transportation regulations, according to WSP.
The truck’s driver was not impaired and both he and his passenger were unharmed, according to the WSP report. Both vehicles were totaled.
The truck’s driver was booked into Whatcom County Jail on an unrelated warrant after the accident and was released June 7.
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