Motorcycle Officer Hangs Up His Helmet Following Traffic Accident

Friday, March 30th 2007, 7:22 pm

By: News On 6

A Tulsa Police Officer knows just how dangerous motorcycles can be. Motorcycle Officer Ross Ford is recovering Friday after a potentially deadly accident. Ford has been on the back of a bike for TPD for 13 years, but he's never been in an accident this bad. The News On 6â€™s Joshua Brakhage reports now, his career will take a different path.

It's hard to get comfortable when you have a snapped collarbone, three broken ribs, a smashed toe and a fractured tailbone, but Ford knows his accident could have been much worse.

"It made some marks on the helmet and scratched it up, but the helmet did its job from when I hit the pavement," said Ford.

His arm is covered in road rash and his T-shirt hides massive bruises. He was crushed under his motorcycle after he collided with a Mercedes. Ford was chasing down a red-light runner and couldn't stop in time.

"The vehicle stopped right out in the middle of the road and blocked all three lanes of traffic,â€ Ford said. â€œI started looking for an escape route then, downshifting, braking as hard as I could. It ripped her bumper skin off of her vehicle, but it sent my bike into just a flip."

We always think of police, fire and paramedics as first responders, but Ford says the first folks to help him on the scene were just witnesses, ordinary citizens who stopped to lend a hand, including two teenage boys.

"They pulled their vehicle down and blocked the intersection, blocked that lane of traffic so at least no one could come over and run over me, and then they came up and checked on me," Ford said.

A dozen people stopped to help including two nurses and the driver who ran the red light.

"I know I was probably a difficult patient at the time, but they really did a good job to take care of me," said Ford.

This is his second accident since last April. Ford says he's giving up motorcycles, including his personal Harley parked in the garage, but he's not ready to give up police work.

"I'll either go back to patrol or look for another position in the police department, be it a detective or do something else," he said.

Ford says he just has too many things to live for including his first grandson, Reece, born just a few days ago. The wreck also cut Ford's campaign for school board short. His campaign signs are still all over the area, but Ford is stuck on bedrest for the next four months.

For More Background On This Story:

03/28/2007 Police Officer Injured In Accident