A teenage cyclist celebrating his birthday was sent to hospital with minor injuries Thursday after being struck by a minivan.
The boy, believed to be 14, and friends stopped to take pictures of a double rainbow near Oliver Road and Hill Street around 8:30 p.m. Thursday when he was struck in the head by the side mirror of a minivan area residents say.
Jackie Crompton, who lives on the corner of the two streets, said she was in her house when she heard a car horn and then a loud thump. When she went over to see the boy, he was conscious and didn’t want medical attention.
But Crompton, a grandmother, told him he needed to go to the hospital and called an ambulance.
"He’s got quite a goose egg," Crompton said. "He said he was ok… it was swelling up quite a bit."
None of the teen cyclists were wearing helmets she added.
Crompton said she thinks Oliver Road and Hill Street is one of the city’s most dangerous intersections.
"They need to put streetlights or something here to stop this," she said.
Along with a large bump on his head, police say the boy was sent to Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre with minor scrapes and bruises. It’s unknown at this time if the driver of the minivan is facing charges.
