Allegedly drunk airline employee arrested after hit-and-run involving 69-year-old cyclist

Two people are 'lucky to be alive' after being hit by a man accused of driving while under the influence.

(Video credit: Fox4)

Shocking video of the incident shows retired doctor Tom Geppert, 69, and Deborah Eads, 65, casually cycling with friends near a Texas airport when a white Subaru Forester approaches the couple at high speed. Instead of moving, the vehicle hits the back of Eads' bike, and also clips Geppert's rear wheel as he turns left. Both riders dismount and the Forester is seen running over Geppert's legs with the front and rear passenger tires before speeding off.

Some of the fellow cyclists who had accompanied the couple chased the vehicle to a nearby gas station, where they confronted the driver and demanded that he return to the scene of the accident. Benjamin Hylander, a 31-year-old American Airlines cargo worker, is accused of being behind the wheel at the time of the collision. Police descended on the scene and had Hylander perform roadside sobriety tests as well as a breathalyzer. The man admitted to police that he had consumed some alcohol before the crash, according to the arrest report. Law enforcement found six empty cans of IPA in his vehicle and recovered two cans of Coors Light from the grass near the vehicle.

Eads was treated for a severe laceration and Geppert, who says he lost consciousness immediately after the collision, suffered a concussion, a broken rib and an injured hamstring. He claims his bike saved him from more serious injuries.

“Luckily it was my thigh, and I think the bike lifted the car a bit,” he said. KDFW.

Geppert says this incident won't stop him from riding his bike, and he's thankful for the men and women who helped him and chased the vehicle after he was hit.

“Overall, incredibly lucky to still be alive,” he said.

Hylander faces two counts of intoxication assault with a vehicle and two additional counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Writer/Columnist

Sierra Marlee is a millennial whose hunger for truth in a world of fake news has brought her to BizPac Review.

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