DERBY — Two Orleans county residents were tragically killed in a motorcycle crash in Derby this afternoon.
Emergency workers responded to Shattuck Hill Road after a call came in regarding a two-vehicle crash at around 3:11 p.m.
Police say 23-year-old Ronald Kennedy of Newport was traveling west on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle before the crash.
Steven Lawson, 64, of Newport, pulled out of the Derby Trailer Park in a bus and was turning east on Shattuck Hill Road when Kennedy struck his vehicle on the driver’s side.
Kennedy was pronounced dead on the scene, police say.
Kyra Birchard, 20, of Derby, was transported to North Country Hospital by EMS, and was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Police say the investigation into this tragic incident is still ongoing.
Several of us, the residents of Shattuck Hill Trailer Park (it was not by the “Derby Trailer Park where the accident occurred) know all too well how dangerous it is to exit from that driveway onto Shattuck Hill Road. Until recently, the RCT bus entered the park at the driveway in question and exited by the driveway closer to Walmart’s drive. Why the RCT driver chose to exit where he did is a cause of concern. Unless he was a new driver, he certainly knew how difficult it is to take the route he did; it’s nearly impossible to see traffic that is coming up over the crest in the road, and where the driveway meets the road is also a hazard. There is a large dip at the junction of the driveway and the road, making it impossible to smoothly exit the park onto Shattuck Hill Rd. Rural Edge has been notified of this issue on several occasions. (This I know because I for one have spoken to Rural Edge about this more than once.)
As for the motorcyclist I can only say that his timing was deadly. I don’t suppose that he knew about this dangerous part of Shattuck Hill Rd. Something MUST be done to prevent further tragedies.
My heart goes out to the families of deceased! May God bless them and help them through this tradgedy!
Omg! ? My heart is breaking for the loss of sweet ‘Kevin’ You will be missed dearly, sweetheart. ?
My sympathies to the families 🙁