Local law enforcement officers in Westmoreland County are currently investigating a devastating single-vehicle accident that took the life of a young motorist over the weekend. Rylie Hillegas, 24, of Greensburg, died from severe injuries after his motorcycle left the roadway along a dark stretch of pavement in Hempfield Township.
According to official reports released by Westmoreland County Coroner John Ackerman, the crash occurred at approximately 11:47 PM on Friday along Baughman Hollow Road. The site of the incident was located just east of Pandora Way, near the overpass where Route 66 crosses above the rural roadway.
Investigators revealed that Hillegas was operating a 2002 Harley-Davidson Dyna Wide Glide motorcycle eastbound on Baughman Hollow Road when trouble struck. As he approached a bend in the road, the motorcycle was unable to negotiate the curve, veering off course and colliding directly with a metal guiderail.
The impact of the collision threw Hillegas clear of the motorcycle, leaving him critically injured along the shoulder of the road. Passing motorists and emergency personnel were alerted quickly, bringing paramedics straight to the scene of the wreck to render immediate aid.
Ambulance crews carefully stabilized Hillegas and rushed him to the nearby emergency department at Westmoreland Hospital. Medical personnel tried desperately to revive him, but his injuries proved fatal, and an attending physician officially pronounced him deceased at 12:29 AM on Saturday.
Coroner Ackerman noted in his public release that Hillegas was not wearing a helmet when the crash occurred. Official cause and manner of death remain pending while authorities await the full results of an autopsy and routine toxicology tests.
Officers from the City of Jeannette Police Department alongside troopers from the Pennsylvania State Police are actively working the case to determine every contributing factor in the wreck. Meanwhile, neighbors and local residents are left reflecting on the dangers of local rural routes while grieving the tragic loss of a young driver taken far too soon.
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