A motorcycle crash Friday in Rochester cut short the American dream for a Ukrainian rider.
A Rochester-area motorcyclist’s American dream came to a tragic end Friday night when he was killed in a crash with a drunken driver, police said.
Ivan Furdey, 38, of Irondequoit, was riding into an intersection in Perinton when he collided with a sedan driven by Frank Kuilman, 51, of Fairport. Police said Kuilman’s car turned into Furdey’s path.
Furdey’s motorcycle caught fire and he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle newspaper.
Kuilman and a passenger in his car were treated for minor injuries at Strong Memorial Hospital.
Kuilman was charged with second-degree vehicular manslaughter, driving while intoxicated and driving without a license, the newspaper reported. He returns to court later this week.
Furdey’s family told WHEC-TV that he had moved to the U.S. nearly 22 years ago. Furdey was born in the Ukraine but loved his new country.
“He was just the greatest person to know,” his cousin, Dana Piekova, told WHEC. “I just never thought of him being gone. He was always there.”
Piekova said Furdey was living the American dream. He had started his own trucking company.
He is survived by two children, 7 and 10 years old, his parents, a brother and two sisters.
“He was a great dad,” Piekova said. “He loved his kids very much.”
Here is the YNN news report and a map of the accident site is below:
Please keep an eye out for bikers. Look twice, save a life!
Thanks for reading, and ride safe!
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