7 days ago
South Boston man says he was struck, seriously injured in bike lane by hit-and-run driver
Austin Barron is recovering from surgery to put plates in his skull. He also has a brain bleed, and scrapes on his hands and knee.
The South Boston former military paratrooper is training for a November Ironman competition and was finishing up a ride from Boston to Billerica and back, when he believes he was sideswiped by a passing car that didn't stop. "[I just remember] something big hitting me from my rear/side and like losing control," he said. "I don't remember actually falling. I just remember kind of losing control."
He later came to in the hospital at Tufts Medical Center. Later, he says he learned that no one stopped, and no one called 911 as he lay on the ground for several minutes. A passing ambulance saw him in a pool of blood and stopped to help. "It was a busy time of day," he said.
The incident happened around 10 a.m. on Saturday, August 2. Barron was riding his bike in the bike lane, with a helmet, on William J. Day Boulevard right near the South Boston state police barracks when he believes he was hit. "If I wasn't wearing a helmet, who knows, I probably would not be alive right now," he said.
State police say they are investigating. Barron hopes that by sharing his story, someone will come forward who witnessed what happened.
"I know that people were there, I remember when I was biking, but there were a lot of people around, so I'm hoping that someone will be like, 'oh this was the car' instead of me trying to figure it out," he explained.
Barron spent four days in the hospital and had one surgery. He has a decently long road to recovery - but is determined to still make it to that Ironman.
"To my girlfriend, I'm not doing it," he joked. "But I would still like to do it. I'm taking it day by day right now."
