Bicyclist fatally hit on D.M. street

Sun February 11 2007
Posted Feb 11, 2007
5,715

Minutes after the hit-run crash on Southeast 14th Street, police question an unlicensed van driver. By TOM ALEX REGISTER STAFF WRITER A Des Moines woman faces a charge of failure to render aid and information following a fatal bicycle crash on the south side of the city Thursday morning. Ramona Hill, 50, of 707 S.E. McKinley Ave. also did not have a driver's license. With license plate information from a witness, police were able to locate Hill and take her in for questioning within 30 minutes of the hit-and-run crash, police said. The victim was identified as Daniel Robert Lewandowski, 57, of 843 Fremont St. The driver of a van disappeared after hitting and killing Lewandowski in the 2600 block of Southeast 14th Street between the North 40 miniature golf course and the Hawkeye Motel. A man who answered the door at Lewandowski's home declined to comment, saying, "If you knew him, you would know he wouldn't want anything said about him." Police Officer Steve Howell said that although Lewandowski had an Iowa driver's license, he apparently used his bicycle as his main form of transportation. "He did odd jobs, and I was told he may have been on his way to Menards to get prices on supplies for a job he was planning," Howell said. Lewandowski moved to Des Moines about a year ago. Police don't know where he lived before that. He apparently had no relatives in the state. Howell said Lewandowski may have a brother or brothers in Buffalo, N.Y., but police were not able to contact any relatives. "He had been living with friends on Fremont," Howell said. "They are very private people." Lewandowski was southbound on his bicycle on Southeast 14th Street about 10:10 a.m. when he was hit from behind by the southbound van, police said. Court records reveal no prior traffic violations by Hill. Her license was not suspended or revoked, Dykstra said, adding that she simply did not have one or it may have expired. Mark Wyatt, executive director of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, said Lewandowski's death is the sixth in Iowa involving a bicyclist in the last 12 months that he is aware of. Wyatt said accidents in which bicyclists are struck from behind during daylight hours are rare. "On a list of the top ten causes for accidents, that would be about eighth," he said. East 14th Street is one of the city's busiest thoroughfares, handling between 28,000 and 29,000 cars daily, said Mike Ring, principal traffic engineer for the city of Des Moines. The speed limit is 35 mph. "East Fourteenth Street is not the busiest road in Des Moines, but it is up there," Ring said. Reporter Abby Simons contributed to this article.