An Oregon couple was tragically killed during a bike ride after they were struck by lumber that fell from the bed of a passing truck. Christian and Michelle Deaton were on the Silverado Trail in Napa Valley when the accident occurred at just after 11 a.m. on Tuesday, October 17, per The Oregonian.
The truck was trying to go around the Deatons at the time.
Reports say that the 2018 Freightliner three-axel flatbed was trying to pass Christian and Michelle Deaton on their bicycles. While traveling at around 40 mph, the lumber stacked on the vehicle slid to the right and some of it hung off, hitting the couple on their bikes.
The Napa County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene quickly.
However, by the time authorities arrived, Christian Deaton, 52, was already dead. Sadly, 48-year-old Michelle Deaton died soon after she was transported to a local hospital.
It’s unclear whether or not the driver will face any criminal charges. However, police say that the 55-year-old driver of the truck, whose identity has not been made public, did remain at the scene after the accident and was open and forthcoming with NCSO officers.
Christian and Michelle Deaton’s relatives are in deep grief from their loss.
The couple had been married for 21 years and loved traveling and staying physically active. “Life was their hobby – there was never a moment where they weren’t going to make the most of it,” the couple’s friend Cholee Thompson said. Throughout their marriage, they remained deeply in love, with Christian’s mother, Carolyn Deaton, telling NBC Bay Area: “They were just two peas in a pod. They just had similar personalities and characteristics and same passions about things.”
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