Santa Rosa Woman Cycling Across Country Seriously Injured In Texas Crash
LIBERTY COUNTY, Texas (CBS SF) – A Santa Rosa woman who was cycling across country reportedly suffered serious injuries after she was struck by a driver in a deadly crash in Southeast Texas last week.
According to CBS affiliate KFDM-TV in Beaumont, 59-year-old Barbara Anne Ferrell was among three bicyclists struck by the driver around 11 a.m. Saturday in near the town of Rye in Liberty County, about 70 miles northeast of Houston. Ferrell was among six cyclists who were participating in an annual ride from San Diego to St. Augustine, Florida.
Authorities said Ferrell was airlifted to a Houston-area hospital in serious condition.
The crash killed 51-year-old Kent Joshua Wosepka of Massachusetts. According to the Houston Chronicle, Wosepka was a community activist and chaired the board of trustees at the Montserrat College of Art.
A third cyclist, identified as 54-year-old Elizabeth Anne O'Brien of Massachusetts, was hospitalized in Beaumont, Texas in serious condition. The other cyclists in the group were not injured.
A sergeant with the Texas Department of Public Safety told the Chronicle that the driver was in his SUV when he "failed to maintain [his] speed" and crashed into the group of cyclists. Despite the police note about his speed, the driver was reportedly released from the scene and had not been charged or cited.
The driver, identified by KFDM-TV as 66-year-old Michael Weaver of Hardin County, was not injured.
Authorities said the crash remains under investigation.