_Editor’s note: this article has been expanded to reflect updates since early Wednesday morning._
A Champaign man died after being hit by a semi truck Tuesday evening, the Champaign Police have determined.
58 year-old Michael Costa was hit as he was riding his bicycle near the corner of Market Street and Anthony Drive.
An autopsy performed on Costa’s body Wednesday revealed the cause of death was blunt force to the pelvis, causing Costa to bleed out, said Champaign County Coroner Duane Northrop.
“(The injury) caused hemorrhaging out from colliding with a truck while on a bicycle,” Northrop said.
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Truck driver Thomas Pelmore told police he was turning north on Market Street from East Anthony Drive around 6:15 p.m. when he looked in his rearview mirror and saw cars stopped in the intersection. Pelmore said he called 911 at that time because he thought an accident may have happened.
Officers observed Costa lying in the road in a semi-responsive state, according to the press release. He was transported to Carle Foundation Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 6:59 p.m.
In a press release Wednesday, police said the bicyclist‘s direction of travel was unable to be determined. There were no signs of damage found on Pelmore’s truck. Officers at the scene reported that the victim’s bicycle was smashed and heavily damaged on the front end.
No witnesses were located at the scene, but the truck was the only in the area at the time. The officers reported that before Costa was transported to Carle he said he was struck by “the big truck.”
