Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

news

Girl, 9, dies after brake lever severs artery in bike crash in US

Charlene Preslee-Kay Sipes lost her life after hitting kerb in Kentucky

A girl in Kentucky has died after a brake lever on her bike’s handlebars severed an artery in her neck after she hit a kerb while riding her bike on Tuesday, her ninth birthday.

A friend of the family of Charlene Preslee-Kay Sipes have set up a GoFundMe page in her memory, reports the Courier Journal.

LaRue County Sheriff Russel McCoy said the youngster, who was pronounced dead at the scene, had been the victim of a “freak accident.”

Writing on Facebook, her mother, Tiffany Fischer, wrote: "This is isn't supposed to be real. It's supposed to be a dream. I’m going to wake up and it's all a nightmare.

"My beautiful baby. My smart and loving and funny baby.

"She was so funny,” she added. “She loved to laugh. She loved to make other people laugh. She had the stars in her eyes and such big dreams. Big, big dreams."

So far, the GoFundMe ‘In Memory of Charlie’ which was set up by family friend Lisa Dewsee has raised more than $12,000 against a target of $2,000.

Dewsee said: "I can't imagine losing a child. I just wanted to help in any way I could."

After the funeral on Saturday, she added: “Yesterday we said goodbye. The gathering couldn’t have been more beautiful. Charlie was surrounded by hundreds of flowers and wind chimes and so many friends and family who love her. It was an honor to be there.”

It's the second freak incident we have reported on in the past year or so in which a child in the US has lost their life while riding their bike.

In August last year, six-year-old Denny Curran died in Washington State after becoming impaled on his bike's handlebar, with reports suggesting that the rubber grip had worn through and that there were no plugs on the end of the bars.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

Add new comment

6 comments

Avatar
peted76 | 4 years ago
1 like

Oh how awful, so sad. 

Avatar
Rick_Rude | 4 years ago
2 likes

Really sad and tragically just one of those rare accidents. 

Avatar
yupiteru | 4 years ago
1 like

This is such a sad thing to happen to such a lovely little girl and obviously I do not know the full circumstances, but I believe that basic First Aid training should be part of the school curriculum.

Maybe, just maybe, if children know what to do to stem bleeding on themselves and others in the event of a severed artery then these sort of tragic deaths can be avoided.

Avatar
DrG82 replied to yupiteru | 4 years ago
3 likes

yupiteru wrote:

This is such a sad thing to happen to such a lovely little girl and obviously I do not know the full circumstances, but I believe that basic First Aid training should be part of the school curriculum.

Maybe, just maybe, if children know what to do to stem bleeding on themselves and others in the event of a severed artery then these sort of tragic deaths can be avoided.

 

You do know that a severed artery is likely to result in bleeding worthy of the finest hollywood makeup/FX department, we're not talking a bit or a cut.

Saddly this is just a tragic accident.

Avatar
brooksby replied to DrG82 | 4 years ago
0 likes

(edited)

Avatar
Pilot Pete | 4 years ago
1 like

That is so shocking. What a freak accident, thankfully. How on earth her parents can deal with this I can’t imagine. 

PP

Latest Comments