LAKELAND, Fla. — A motorcyclist died from his injuries after crashing his bike off Rockridge Road early Thursday morning.
Deputies responded just after 7 a.m. to the area near U.S. Highway 98 after a passerby saw the motorcycle and its rider, 40-year-old Ronel Edward Kirkland II, on the ground, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
His girlfriend reportedly told law enforcement that Kirkland left home around 1 a.m. to get a tool, and she didn't hear from him after that.
It's believed Kirkland couldn't take the curve in the road and hit a small ditch, which threw him off the bike. He then hit a hog wire fence, with his head coming into contact with the post, the sheriff's office said, adding that he was not wearing a helmet.
Investigators propped the bike up after the crash, as seen in the photo, so as to not allow fuel to leak into the ground, according to the agency.
