A bicyclist was killed Thursday afternoon after a collision with a pickup truck in west Phoenix, authorities said. Phoenix police officers were called to the area of 35th Avenue and Bethany Home Road at about 4 p.m. and found the woman unresponsive at the scene. She was pronounced dead by first responders, and has been identified by police as 60-year-old Jennifer Lam.
Officers who responded to the crash interviewed witnesses at the scene. Those witnesses told police that the driver of the pickup truck remained at the location after the collision occurred. Investigators have said the driver did not display signs of impairment when officers made contact at the scene, though the investigation into the circumstances of the crash is ongoing.
Phoenix police described the movements that led up to the collision: the bicyclist was traveling westbound on a sidewalk alongside Bethany Home Road when she and the pickup truck came into contact. The truck was exiting a business at the time of the collision. Beyond that broad sequence of events, authorities have not released additional details about the moments immediately before or after the impact.
Investigators and emergency personnel gather around a pickup truck behind police tape at the west Phoenix crash scene where a 60-year-old bicyclist was killed, police say.
Responding officers secured the area near 35th Avenue and Bethany Home Road and set up a perimeter as investigators worked the scene. Emergency personnel and investigators were observed around the pickup truck involved in the crash, and police tape cordoned off the immediate vicinity while evidence was documented and photographed. No additional injuries or other vehicles involved were reported in initial accounts released by officers on scene.
Detectives with the Phoenix Police Department's collision investigation unit have taken responsibility for the active inquiry, collecting witness statements and examining the vehicle and surrounding area for evidence. Police have not released any information about citations, charges, or whether any arrests have been made; they have labeled the incident an active investigation and said more information will be released when available.
Family members and others who knew the victim have not issued statements that were made public as of the last update from police. Officials have not provided further details about funeral arrangements or the circumstances leading up to Lam riding on the sidewalk at that location. The department reiterated that the investigation remains open, and investigators will continue to gather facts to determine the precise sequence of events that led to the fatal collision.