Motorcycle cop thrown after hitting extinguisher on I-880/CA

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Motorcycle cop thrown after hitting extinguisher on I-880
Police credit alert driver with saving Oakland officer from serious injury
, FROM STAFF REPORTS  

 
 
OAKLAND — An Oakland police traffic officer suffered numerous cuts and bruises Wednesday morning when he was thrown from his motorcycle on Interstate 880 after hitting a large fire extinguisher, authorities said.
Officer Greg Bellusa was treated at a local hospital for severe cuts to his hands and arms, and later released.

Police credited an El Sobrante woman with stopping her car on the freeway after the accident to prevent Bellusa from being hit by any vehicles and suffering more serious injuries.

The unusual accident happened about 7:40 a.m. in the southbound lanes of I-880 between 16th and 23rd avenues.

Bellusa, the son of retired Oakland Sgt. Larry Bellusa, who was also a motorcycle officer, was on his way to a "Walk to School" event to help escort children and had gotten on the freeway near Ninth Avenue.

Sgt. Russ Chew said Bellusa was going about 50 mph and was moving into the lane closest to the center divider when the 2-foot-long fire extinguisher suddenly came spinning in front of him.

Chew said the California Highway Patrol is trying to determine how the extinguisher  got onto the freeway, with the most likely scenario that it fell off another vehicle.
Bellusa tried to avoid the extinguisher but could not. The impact caused him to be thrown from his motorcycle onto the pavement, where he slid and rolled for some distance before amazingly coming to a stop standing upright.

An El Sobrante woman driving behind Bellusa saw what happened and stopped in a lane to protect him from other traffic, Chew said. He said police plan to give the woman a commendation.

"Her quick reaction to the incident in front of her could very well have saved (Bellusa's) life," Chew said. "There could have been some chain-reaction accidents, and with the officer rolling in the traffic lane he could easily have been struck."

The accident backed up traffic on the freeway in both directions for more than 30 minutes.