Klamath Falls, Ore. – Ben Vallejos of Klamath Falls is on a long road to recovery after he was hit on his motorcycle by a distracted driver.
The accident happened July 2nd at Shasta Way and the Crater Lake Bypass.
Vallejos says he doesn’t remember that much about the actual accident. “I was on my motorcycle pulling up to a stop light, hadn’t even come to a complete stop yet.”
“When a distracted driver plowed into him going maybe about 50,” added Vallejo’s son, Vaughn. “And just kind of sent him flying into the intersection.”
Ben Vallejos suffered massive internal injuries, a broken back, and a concussion.
“All we really knew was that dad was hit,” Ben’s son Ariston Vallejos said. “He was bleeding pretty badly internally, and he was going to be transported to Bend.”
Vallejos was initially listed in critical condition at St. Charles Medical Center.
A GoFundMe campaign quickly raised over $20,000.
“I knew he knew a lot of people,” Vaughn Vallejos reflected. “But actually experiencing it first hand was very humbling, and very inspirational.”
Vallejos and his sons believe he is lucky to be alive.
“Anytime you’re faced with that sense of mortality, of yourself, of someone close to you, I think it really shakes up your perspective a bit,” Ariston Vallejos said.
“It wasn’t my time to go,” said an emotional Ben Vallejos. “I don’t know why – my mission’s not finished. There’s no reason I should be here – I don’t know.”
The driver accused of hitting Vallejos is not facing criminal charges at this time.
He was issued a citation for careless driving.
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