LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — An unspeakable tragedy left witnesses dumbfounded in the moments after a man high on meth drove a box truck into a group of bicyclists, killing five and injuring four others, near Searchlight on December 10, 2020.
"I don't even know," said cyclist Michael Anderson from the scene. "It's the worst thing I've ever seen in my life."
Two years later, friends of the five victims remember them as good people taken too soon.
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"It's a loss," said Shawn Tyrone, general manager of Las Vegas Cyclery. "We miss those guys every day. They were good people. They were good friends. We miss them every day."
Tyrone said the groundswell of support for the cycling community in the days and months following the crash was heartening, and he praised efforts to raise safety awareness and build cycle safe infrastructure around the Las Vegas valley.
"They're working hard," he said. "They're advocating for safety. They're putting in bike lanes. They're doing a lot of things that are definitely helping, but we're not there yet."
The Regional Transportation Commission lists more than 100 miles of dedicated bike routes and 400 miles of bike lanes in the region.
Good, in Tyrone's eyes, but not enough.
"It doesn't happen overnight. It doesn't happen in a year. It doesn't happen in two years," he said.
Beyond infrastructure, Tyrone said continued focus on driver safety education campaigns is important to avoid senseless tragedies like the one two years ago.
"We can definitely remember them in our hearts and every time we get on our bikes, and just keep in mind that we're responsible for our own safety," he said.
Cyclists will memorialize the crash victims with a bike ride starting at the West Tech parking lot at 1945 West Charleston Boulevard, Las Vegas, NV.
