TOKYO (TR) – A 59-year-old cyclist died in Shibuya Ward over the weekend after an opening car door threw him directly into the path of a trailing taxi, police said, reports TV Asahi (Sep. 14).
The fatal chain of events unfolded along Meiji Dori at around 6:50 p.m. on September 12. According to police, a 58-year-old man had pulled his vehicle over to the shoulder of the road and activated his hazard lights.
As the driver opened his door to exit the vehicle, the 59-year-old cyclist approached from behind. The sudden opening of the door struck the bicycle, violently ejecting the rider into the adjacent right lane.
Immediately after being thrown into the roadway, the cyclist was run over by a taxi traveling in the same direction. He was rushed to a nearby hospital but was later pronounced dead.
According to the Metropolitan Police Department, the victim was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.
Investigators noted that the section of the street where the 58-year-old man had stopped his car is a designated no-parking zone. Police are continuing to investigate the exact circumstances surrounding the deadly incident.
