Military motorcycle deaths rise in 2008

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Military motorcycle deaths rise in 2008
By Cindy Fisher, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Sunday, February 15, 2009

KADENA AIR BASE, Okinawa — Fatalities among motorcycle riders in the U.S. military increased in 2008 — and for at least one service, they exceeded the number of combat deaths in Iraq.

More than 120 servicemembers were killed in motorcycle crashes in fiscal year 2008, up from 97 the year before, according to Defense Department Web sites. It’s a trend that has prompted safety officials to enhance the motorcycle safety program on Okinawa.

Twenty-five Marines died in motorcycle crashes worldwide in 2008, five more than the number of Marines killed in combat in Iraq over the same period. For the Corps, the number represented the most motorcycle-related deaths during any single year in the past decade.

The military’s new focus on motorcycle safety led to the delivery of 12 Hyosung Comet GT250 motorcycles to the Marine Corps motorcycle safety office on Kadena Air Base in January, said Pat Yamashiro, a rider coach with the office.

The motorcycles were put into use for the first time at a three-day basic rider course on Kadena that concluded Wednesday.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=60719