Motorcycle crash in Pelham claims life

A 25-year old St. Catharines woman was killed in a horrific crash last night in Pelham. She long control on a curve on Effingham Road and slammed head on into a pickup.

Leon Courchaine heard the woman’s bike gearing down: “And then I heard whack. And that was it. Silence.”

Neighbour Bob Johnstone heard the sirens and ran out to the end of his driveway. He could see a wrecked motorcycle and a woman lying on the road: “And they were working on her for ten minutes, on her heart. But I could see they gave up. There was a blanket over her.”

The 25-year old motorcycle rider lost control on the curve and slammed into an oncoming pickup.

Bike riders love Effingham. It has a lot of hills and curves.

We talked to a number of people who live along Effinghman and they all said they weren’t surprised a motorcyclist was killed here last night.”

“I’ve seen too many bad motorbike accidents here. And car accidents. Head on collisions on the corner.”

The main problem is speed.

Leon Courchaine:  “If you notice the sign on this road at 50 kilometres per hour, not 50 miles per hour and they insist on speeding on this road.”

The victim’s name has not been released. but people online are referring to her as ‘steph’. One woman wrote, “I wish this wasn’t true. But at least it was doing something you loved with your R6.”

Bob Johnstone says there were a couple of nurses at the crash scene that were doing their best to help this young woman. But unfortunately, her injuries were fatal.