Bicyclist With Philly-based Nonprofit Struck, Killed By Driver On Cell Phone
CANUTE, Okla. (CBS/AP) — A New York high school teacher leading a group of bicyclists with a Philadelphia-based nonprofit on a cross-country trip was struck and killed in Oklahoma by a driver who was looking at her phone, according to police.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said Thursday that 25-year-old Patrick Wanninkhof of Key Biscayne, Florida, was leading a group of more than two dozen cyclists with the organization Bike & Build on a charity bike trip from Maine to Santa Barbara, California when he and another rider, 22-year-old Bridget Anderson of Port Orange, Florida, were hit by a car along the highway.
Wanninkhof was pronounced dead at the scene. Anderson was hospitalized in Oklahoma City in stable condition.
According to the police report, the woman who was driving the car told authorities that she was distracted by looking at her phone when she crashed into the bicyclists.
There was no immediate word on any charges against the driver.
Bike & Build, based in Manayunk, organizes cross-country bicycle trips which benefit affordable housing groups. According to the organization's Facebook page, Wanninkhof joined the nonprofit after serving for three years with Teach for America.
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