San Francisco police say that a woman suffered head trauma in a bicycle accident in the Richmond district Tuesday afternoon. Authorities say a mail truck was traveling north on 18th Avenue shortly before 5:00 p.m. and apparently rolled into the intersection and striking the cyclist, who was heading east on Clement Street. The 39-year-old woman riding the bicycle was not wearing a helmet and police say that she sustained a head injury.
Initial reports indicated that the cyclist suffered life-threatening injuries in the San Francisco bike accident. However, authorities revised those reports, saying the injuries appear to be minor. The accident victim was transported to San Francisco General Hospital after the accident for medical treatment. A spokesman for the San Francisco police says that she was released from the hospital roughly an hour after the crash.
Law enforcement says that it appears the postal worker did not come to a complete stop at the intersection before that accident occurred. Police say that the woman had the right of way. The driver of the mail truck reportedly stopped at the scene of the crash and has cooperated with law enforcement. No citations have been issued.
San Francisco personal injury lawyers know that head trauma can involve a wide range of brain injuries. Head trauma has received an increasing amount of public awareness in recent news events, including stories regarding veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, sports related stories of concussions leading to long range medical issues for professional athletes and the head trauma U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords sustained in January 2010.
The degree of severity of a brain injury can vary widely, but head trauma is generally not an injury that accident victims should take lightly.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, “Cyclist hurt in S.F. crash with mail truck,” Will Kane, Feb. 2, 2012
