Fallbrook motorcyclist, 72, dies after crash in De Luz

DE LUZ – A 72-year-old motorcyclist was fatally injured Wednesday, Feb. 20, when he lost control of his bike and crashed on a street just west of Temecula, authorities said Thursday, Feb. 21.

The victim was identified as Howard Burke of Fallbrook. He died shortly after the crash Wednesday morning on Sycamore Creek Drive, near Avenida de Oro, in an unincorporated community known as De Luz, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Officer Mike Lassig said the victim was headed west on Sycamore Creek about 10:15 a.m. when he failed to negotiate a bend in the road and his 2015 Indian Roadmaster overturned, ejecting the man onto the shoulder, where his bike rolled over him.

Riverside County Fire Department paramedics arrived within a few minutes and found the victim clinging to life, according to Lassig. The motorcyclist was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar, where he died less than an hour later.

Lassig indicated that speed was a contributing factor in the crash, which remains under investigation.