Firefighters, Police Lift Van Off Trapped Cyclist: Update

A utility van blew through a stop sign Monday afternoon in Watsonville, setting off an unlikely chain of events that left a cyclist pinned under another van and the utility vehicle crashed into the front of a taxidermist office, Watsonville police reported.

Firefighters and police officers used heroic strength to free the cyclist, a 32-year-old Watsonville man, from under the van, police said. 

The collisions happened just before 2 p.m. on East Lake Avenue and Blackburn Street. They started when a man driving utility van that blew through a stop sign on Blackburn and hit a van traveling westbound on East Lake, police said. 

The force of the collision forced the second van off the road and onto the north sidewalk, where it struck the cyclist and rolled over on top of him, police said.

"Numerous" police officers and firefighters lifted the van off the injured cyclist. He was alert and answering questions, though police described his injuries as "life threatening." He was flown to a Bay Area trauma center for treatment, police said. 

The utility van crashed into the Gurnee Freeze-Dri Taxidermy office at 381 E. Lake Ave., causing minor damage to the business. The driver was taken to Watsonville Community Hospital with minor injuries. 

The woman driving the other van was not hurt, police said. 

Initial reports via emergency radio traffic confused the gender of the cyclist. 

Watsonville police send a Nixle alert via email and text messaging to residents just after 2 p.m. urging them to avoid the area due to temporary road closures.