A Thursday morning bike ride ended in tragedy on Fort Lauderdale’s Southeast 17th Street bridge when a bicyclist was struck by a vehicle and the driver took off, according to police.
The crash happened just after 6:40 a.m. in the 2000 block of SE 17th Street. First responders rushed the rider, a woman traveling eastbound, to Broward Health Medical Center, where she later died. Eastbound lanes over the bridge were shut down for several hours during the investigation and have since reopened.
Fort Lauderdale Police and Fire Rescue units responded to the scene, and investigators said the woman was heading east when she was hit by a dark-colored vehicle that did not stop, WSVN reported. Officers closed the eastbound side of the bridge while they documented the scene and later reopened it to traffic.
Detectives are still searching for the driver. Anyone with information is asked to call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Tipsters can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward, according to Broward County Crime Stoppers, which also accepts submissions through its online portal.
Bridge and safety context
The Southeast 17th Street causeway is a bascule drawbridge that carries two 12-foot traffic lanes in each direction, plus an outside shoulder described as a bike lane and an 8-foot sidewalk, according to project engineering notes. Regional transportation planners have already flagged SE 17th as a corridor needing upgrades and are working on a mobility-hub plan and other safety improvements aimed at cutting bicyclist and pedestrian injuries, as outlined by CDR Maguire and the Broward MPO.
Legal implications
Florida law is blunt about what happens when a driver leaves the scene of a deadly crash. Under Section 316.027 of the Florida Statutes, leaving the scene of a crash that results in death is a felony, with specified penalties for crashes involving death or serious injury that can include mandatory minimum sentences, according to the Florida statutes.
Police said the investigation is ongoing and urged anyone with video or details about the incident to contact Crime Stoppers, according to Broward County Crime Stoppers.
