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Tulsaworld.com News
BA teen dies in road accident while on bike tour fundraiser
By CLIFTON ADCOCK World Staff Writer
9/17/2006
OKAY -- A Broken Arrow teen was killed Saturday after being struck by a semi while riding in the 21st annual MS 150 bike tour in Wagoner County.
Charlie Vogann, 15, was pronounced dead at the scene after the bicycle he was riding collided with a semi truck that was not pulling a trailer, according to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
Troopers reported that at around 1:20 p.m. Vogann failed to yield at a stop sign at the intersection of Oklahoma 16 and Old Porter Road, approximately one mile south of Okay.
Vogann turned from the county road into the path of the semi, which was headed north on Oklahoma 16, struck the driver-side rear axle of a 2007 Peterbilt and was thrown approximately 164 feet, according to the OHP.
Vogann was wearing a helmet when the accident occurred, troopers reported.
The driver of the truck, Manciel Carter, 56, of Cornith, Miss., and his passenger, Tracie Lane, 23, of Muskogee were not injured.
Vogann was one of more than 660 cyclists and volunteers for the MS 150, a two-day fundraising tour that is traveling this year from Tulsa to Camp Gruber and back, said Paula Cortner, president of the Oklahoma Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
Cortner said the
intersection was manned by a safety volunteer, who is responsible for keeping a lookout for bicyclists.
"Our biggest concern is for the family of the cyclist," she said. "Safety is the No. 1 priority with this event. It's a very difficult incident for all of us. It's very difficult for the all of the cyclists and volunteers."
Cortner said an EMSA unit following the cyclists was the first to respond to the accident.
The fatality is the first in the event's 21 years, she said.
A professional group counselor was available for cyclists and volunteers as they made an overnight stop at Camp Gruber in Muskogee County.
Cortner said the group planned to finish the ride Sunday.
"In honor of all the cyclists and volunteers and people who worked on this for a year's time, we want to continue tomorrow," Cortner said Saturday night.