SUV strikes and kills 2 South Florida motorcycle deputies and injures a 3rd, sheriff says

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An SUV struck and killed two South Florida motorcycle deputies and critically injured a third early Thursday as they stood with their bikes alongside a busy roadway, officials said.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputies had been conducting traffic enforcement in the Wellington area, west of West Palm Beach, before the crash around 9 a.m., officials said.

“When a deputy dies, a piece of the community dies with them,” Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said during a news conference Thursday afternoon.

One deputy’s bike failed to start and called over the other two to help move it to the grassy shoulder, Bradshaw said. They believed the motorcycle’s battery was dead and called another deputy to bring them jumper cables.

As the deputies waited, a woman driving an SUV lost control while trying to drive around another vehicle, Bradshaw said. She drove up on the shoulder, and struck all three deputies.

The deputies were transported to a hospital, where two died. The third underwent surgery and was in critical but stable condition Thursday afternoon.

The sheriff’s office didn’t immediately release the names of the deputies or the SUV driver. Bradshaw said it wasn’t immediately clear if speed was a factor in the crash, but added the woman, who sustained minor injuries, didn’t seem to be impaired or under the influence of drugs or alcohol.