MuskogeePhoenix.com, Muskogee, OK

November 3, 2008

Motorcyclist hurt in crash with car

Eufaula man hospitalized following motorcycle wreck

By Keith Purtell

Truck driver Todd Cummins said he was shocked when he saw a collision happen right in front of him Monday afternoon.

The accident occurred at approximately 3 p.m. on U.S. 69 at the exit to Summit.

Cummins, 42, of Livingston, Texas, said he was eastbound in the inner lane.

“I was passing another truck,” Cummins said. “The guy on the motorcycle was about 20 feet in front of me. Then this black car just shot across southbound and hit the motorcycle. I’d say it impacted the car on the front right corner. No one had any time to react.”

Cummins said the black motorcycle was hurled against the stop sign where Summit Road enters U.S. 69, and the driver was thrown across the entrance lane and into the grass.

“He was conscious and talking to people who gathered around, but he wasn’t moving,” he said.

Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Robert Francis said he had not yet fully identified the Eufaula man driving the motorcycle, but the man was transported to Muskogee Regional Medical Center.

Francis said the driver of the black 2008 Pontiac G6 was John Norwood, 62, of Checotah.

“He was stopped at the initial stop sign at the left turn lane, but he said he never saw the motorcycle when he pulled out. Basically, he failed to yield to oncoming traffic.”

Francis said he would issue Norwood a citation for failure to yield at a stop sign.



Reach Keith Purtell at 918-684-2925 or Click Here to Send Email