(WWJ) A Bloomfield Hills and Ann Arbor man have been identified as the victims of a crash involving five cyclists who were participating in a Make-A-Wish charity bike ride in west Michigan.
Authorities said Michael Salhaney, 57 of Bloomfield Hills, and Edward Erickson, 48, of Ann Arbor died when the suspect veered into the oncoming traffic lane to pass a UPS truck she had been driving behind—causing her SUV to collide head-on with the cycling group of five men.
The Ionia County Sheriff’s Office told WWJ Mandy Benn, 42 of Ionia County, was intoxicated when the crash happened on Saturday just before noon in Ronald Township, about 40 miles east of Grand Rapids.
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One of the men died immediately at the scene and the other passed away shortly after he was airlifted to a nearby hospital, according to the Ionia County Sheriff’s Office. The Detroit Free Press reports that one of the survivors remains in serious but stable condition, while the other two have been treated and released from the hospital.
The sheriff’s office said the five cyclists were participating in the Make-A-Wish Bicycle Tour, a“three-day endurance ride” across most of Michigan to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan.
Benn was arraigned Monday on a long list of charges—the most severe being operating while intoxicated causing death/operating a vehicle while under the influence of a controlled substance, a 15-year- felony. The other counts included operating while intoxicated/operating a vehicle while under the influence of a controlled substance, a 93-day misdemeanor, and a second offense notice operating while intoxicated, a 1-year misdemeanor.
She is being held on a one-million-dollar cash/surety bond, and is due back in court next Monday.