Here is your first look at Melvin Russell Morrison, the 45-year-old Augusta man who died Monday afternoon while trying to pass a school bus on his dirt bike.
Coroner Mark Bowen said Morrison was riding on a dirt bike behind the school bus on Old McDuffie Road around 5 p.m. when he tried to pass the bus. He hit the side of the bus as the bus turned left onto Kenny Road.
The Augusta man was knocked to the ground. “Morrison was killed instantly and was pronounced dead on the scene” at 5:40 p.m. Monday, Bowen said.
Local residents and law enforcement have complained about dirt bikes on the roads.
June Merritt said there were quite a few dirt bikers on Mike Padgett Highway on Monday afternoon, headed south and holding up traffic in both lanes. She said they were speeding and driving reckless. “And not ONE of them had a helmet on,” she wrote on Facebook. “We were wondering where the cops are when you need them.”
