Two men die in separate traffic crashes in NE Marion County

[Photo courtesy FHP]

The Florida Highway Patrol investigated two traffic fatalities within hours of each other on Oct. 25 and 26 in northeast Marion County.

A 36-year-old Fort McCoy man died Friday night (Oct. 25) when the motorcycle he was operating without lighting was struck from behind by a pickup truck. The crash occurred around 8:16 p.m. on County Road 315 just south of Northeast 225th Place, according to an FHP press release.

The motorcyclist was traveling south on CR 315 on a “non-registered motor vehicle … without any lighting equipment” as an 18-year-old Fort McCoy man drove a pickup truck “directly behind” on the county road.  The pickup driver “was unable to observe” the other vehicle and struck the motorcycle in the rear, the press release stated.

The motorcycle came to rest in a ditch on the west side of the roadway. The press release stated the motorcyclist was not wearing a helmet. The pickup driver was not injured; it was unclear if he was wearing seatbelt.

Around 10:40 a.m. Saturday (Oct. 26), a 64-year-old Fort McCoy man died in a two-vehicle crash on Northeast 160th Avenue Road, four-tenths of a mile south of Northeast 180th Street. The FHP press release indicated the man was driving a sedan; it was unknown if he was wearing a seatbelt.

The second vehicle was driven by a 58-year-old man from Lutz, who was not wearing a seat belt and was not injured, according to the press release. That crash remains under investigation.