CARLSBAD, Calif. — Carlsbad City Council held an emotional assembly Tuesday after a lethal electrical bike crash earlier this month.
Bob Embree, and his mom and father, spoke throughout public remark addressing site visitors issues of their neighborhood after Embree’s spouse, 35-year-old Christine Hawk Embree, was driving an e-bike with their 16-month-old daughter Delilah, when a lady driving a Toyota 4-Runner collided with them.
“I don’t want anyone to have to suffer how I’ve suffered, we were supposed to live 40 more years together, we were supposed to grow old and gray,” Bob Embree mentioned. “My daughter, she doesn’t have a mom.”
The incident occurred on the intersection of Valley Street and Basswood Avenue in Carlsbad on Aug. 7. According to household, Delilah was strapped into a motorcycle seat sporting a helmet and was “miraculously” not damage.
Christine’s mother-in-law, Gretchen Embree, mentioned Christine and Delilah had been on their manner house from the park and that Christine was very cautious.
“Christine was the sunshine in our life,” Gretchen mentioned.
The Embree household and plenty of within the Carlsbad neighborhood are pushing for change.
“This is a great city, I was born and raised here but it’s not the same sleepy beach community it was 30 years ago, we have to evolve with the times,” Bob’s father Mark Embree mentioned with tears in his eyes through the assembly.
Bob described his spouse’s accidents had been the worst trauma surgeons with a mixed 70 years expertise had ever seen.
“12 broken ribs, a broken clavicle, two punctured lungs, a massive hemothorax and every vital organ in her abdomen, destroyed, her aorta ripped off her spleen,” Bob mentioned. “You know what hurts me, she was conscious for an hour, answering questions on her way to the hospital, my wife suffered the way no one should suffer.”
Bob recounted his spouse’s final moments from the identical podium he stood at 19 days earlier than his spouse was killed, when he requested metropolis council to assist deal with rushing drivers in his neighborhood after a automobile crashed on his road.
“Never in a million years did I think three weeks later, my wife would be hit,” he mentioned.
Some options to rushing drivers had been introduced up throughout public remark.
“Ceramic road reflectors, dips or divets in the road, those would be the easiest solutions,” Gretchen proposed in her speech throughout public remark.
Carlsbad City Manager Scott Chadwick mentioned efforts are underway to deal with site visitors security.
This comes after one other lethal crash Monday on Carlsbad Boulevard which killed a bicyclist, who police say was hit by a rushing motorcyclist fleeing from a California State Parks officer throughout a pursuit.
Chadwick says he has requested the town to collect pace, site visitors and collision information for the areas concerned within the two latest lethal crashes. He added there’s a challenge underway by Residential Traffic Management Program, the place site visitors engineers work with neighborhoods to deal with points, corresponding to rushing. He mentioned they’ve accomplished work in 10 neighborhoods and are beginning extra.
“On behalf of the entire city council, we want to extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones,” Chadwick mentioned.
Chadwick additionally touched on the necessity for extra bike lanes, completely different varieties of crosswalk and extra long-term options. He mentioned there’s a particular mobility fee assembly Thursday the place Tuesday’s public feedback can be introduced up as properly.
Police haven’t mentioned if the motive force was rushing within the crash that killed Christine. Carlsbad Police mentioned the investigation remains to be underway.
The Orange County Fire Association, the place Bob works, has arrange a Benevolant Trust fund to assist him and his daughter.
A GoFundMe has raised greater than $120,000, shortly surpassing its $20,000 objective.
Gretchen, a former trainer, shared an acronym through the council assembly Tuesday to keep in mind Christine because the sunshine of their lives, and in addition to assist drivers.
S: Stop the distraction in your automobile, cease utilizing telephones.
U: Understand the foundations of the highway. “look at the traffic, look at the e-bikes, slowdown,” she mentioned.
N: Never take your eyes off the highway