Six motorcyclists were killed in separate crashes during this year’s Bike Week celebration in Daytona Beach, according to authorities.
The death toll matched that of last year’s gathering, where six also died due to traffic accidents, reports said.
At the 80th annual event this year, held March 5-14, multiple bikers also suffered serious and traumatic injuries that required hospitalization, The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported.
The total number of casualties is still be tallied, according to Halifax Health Medical Center spokesman John Guthrie, who added “it may be a record-breaking week, unfortunately.”
The 10-day motorcycle rally is held annually and draws about 500,000 people from across the country. The highlights include motorcycle racing, concerts, parties, and street festivals.
Likely due to the pandemic, there were not as many revelers along Main Street this year as in year’s past, the News-Journal reported.
On the final day of this year’s gala, a 39-year-old woman from Seabrook, New Hampshire, was killed when another vehicle rear-ended the motorcycle she was riding on, said Daytona Beach police spokesman Messod Bendayan.
Early the next morning, passing motorists found a 42-year-old man dead in the road from an apparent single-motorcycle crash, police said.
Other deaths included a 57-year-old man who lost control of his motorcycle on March 5; a 33-year-old rider killed March 10; a 59-year-old man from Signal Hill, California, killed March 11; and a South Carolina man killed March 14, The Associated Press reported.
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