By Kacie Svoboda
One of the 2016 Motorcycle Rally’s three fatal accidents occurred on Highway 16 east of Hill City by the Visitor Information Center on Tuesday afternoon.
At around 2 p.m., a trike driven by Kenneth Sheridan, 69, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, rear-ended a pickup as it stopped for traffic. The trike passenger Paulette Sheridan, 68, also of Council Bluffs, was thrown from the vehicle.
The Hill City Ambulance quickly responded to the scene of the accident, transporting Paulette to Rapid City Regional Hospital. However, Paulette later died as a result of her injuries.
Kenneth suffered only minor injuries. Neither was wearing a helmet.
The pickup driver, who is from Rapid City, was not injured.
While this was the area’s only Rally fatality, other local accidents resulted in non-life-threatening injuries.
At 2:17 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 6, a motorcycle driven by Michael Foss, 23, of Hermosa, was westbound on Old Hill City Road near Keystone, when it collided with an eastbound motorcycle driven by Dana West, 65, of Rapid City. Foss suffered serious non-life-threatening injuries and was cited for driving on wrong side of the road. West sustained minor injuries. Both riders were wearing helmets.
Later that afternoon, Catherine Cortese, 54, of Colorado Springs, Colo., was driving a motorcycle eight miles east of Custer in Custer State Park when she lost control. She was wearing a helmet and sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Just before 10 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 7, William Tines, 68, of New Underwood, S.D., was driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee east on Sheridan Lake Road. A westbound motorcycle driven by Keith Henderson, 57, of Pittsburgh, Pa., came around a curve, went across the center line and hit the jeep. Tines, who was wearing a seatbelt, was not injured.
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