Bicyclist Hit by Car Dies of Injuries

A bicyclist who was struck by a car Sunday in Oxnard has died of his injuries, authorities said Tuesday.

The death of the man, who has not been identified, was the sole traffic fatality in Ventura County over the long weekend but came after a string of deadly crashes that occurred just before the start of the holiday period.

The California Highway Patrol reported 14 injury accidents for the period beginning Friday and ending midnight Monday, and two collisions involving suspected drunk driving.

Over the four-day holiday weekend, CHP officers arrested 16 people on suspicion of drunk driving, down from 23 during the same period last year. “People seem more aware of the hazards of drinking and driving and of the penalties,” said Officer Dave Webb.

The bicyclist was placed on life support at St. John’s Regional Medical Center after the accident, near the intersection of Channel Islands Boulevard and Albany Drive.

Last week, four people were killed in separate collisions, including a 32-year-old Ventura man whose convertible veered off Pacific Coast Highway on Thursday.

Craig Thompson was heading north about 7 p.m. and lost control of his Mazda Miata on a sharp turn near Deer Creek Road. The car crossed into the southbound lane, spun out on a soft shoulder and went over the bluff, plunging 40 feet to the beach and landing on its top. Thompson died at the scene.