A tragic incident unfolded on Interstate 95 in Volusia County, where a 34-year-old Sanford woman died after falling off a motorcycle on Friday afternoon. According to a report from the Orlando-News, the accident occurred northbound near mile marker 235, around 2:05 p.m.
The Florida Highway Patrol informed that the vehicle involved was a 2003 Harley-Davidson Dyna Wide Glide, with a male rider, 45-year-old Ricardo Lazaro Bernal from Sanford, and the female passenger. In a statement obtained by WESH, they reported that the passenger is believed to have fallen asleep before she fell off the bike and collided with a guardrail. Bernal, the driver was not injured and remained at the site after the crash.
The Florida Highway Patrol's investigation suggested that after the woman fell and hit the guardrail, she sustained fatal injuries and was declared dead at the scene. It was also noted that she was not wearing a helmet at the time of the incident. The circumstances leading to her fall, remain under official scrutiny.
Following the accident, Bernal faced charges—he was apprehended due to driving with a suspended license as a habitual traffic offender, which resulted in death, and driving without a motorcycle endorsement. He was booked into the Volusia County Jail on these charges, as detailed by the authorities. The ongoing investigation by the FHP may yield more insights into this harrowing event, but for now, another life has been claimed on the highways that crisscross our state, leaving community and family to reel in the aftermath of sudden loss.
