A woman died Wednesday after suffering serious injuries in a twist of fate on a motorcycle early Sunday, a spokesman for the Des Moines Police Department said.
Lynz Ross, 35, of Des Moines, a passenger on a motorcycle traveling north on 19th Street “at full speed” around 3:30 a. m. Sunday when he collided with a car at the intersection of 19th Street and Interstate 235. Moines police Sgt. Paul Parizek said in a news release.
The car entered the intersection with a green light, according to the statement. The speed at which the motorcycle is traveling has not yet been determined, Parizek said.
The driver of the motorcycle, who has not been identified, and Ross were taken to hospitals in Des Moines, Parizek said. Ross remains in critical condition until his death Wednesday. The police did not provide any information to the driver of the motorcycle. A woman driving the car treated for injuries at a local hospital.
It’s the 19th road death in 2022 in Des Moines and the tenth involving a motorcycle, according to Parizek.
For more than two years, Parizek and Iowa State Patrol officials blamed racing for an increase in highway deaths from 337 in 2019 and 343 in 2020 to another 354 people in 2021. As of November 3, another 285 people have died in road injuries. in Iowa, a minimum of four other people since the same date last year, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation, which also reports that another 46 people have died in motorcycle injuries this year.
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Philip Joens covers public protection and RAGBRAI for Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-443-3347 at pjoens@registermedia. com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.