A 31-year-old man and his 5-year-old son died after the dirt bike the two were on crashed into a Volkswagen hatchback near New Castle on Saturday night, police said.
Delaware State Police were called to Route 9 at its intersection with Halcyon Drive just before 9:15 p.m. for reports of the wreck.
There, they found the 31-year-old dead and his son critically injured. The boy was rushed to Nemours Children’s Hospital, where he later died, police said Monday.
According to police, the man was driving the unregistered dirt bike on Route 9 with his son sitting between him and the handlebars when he hit a Volkswagen that was turning onto Halcyon Drive from Route 9.
The dirt bike – which was being driven illegally – did not have any lights, police said. Both the man and his son were ejected after hitting the front of the car.
Delaware law requires off-highway vehicles, including dirt bikes, to be registered before use. Even when they are registered, drivers are not allowed to operate them on streets or highways except in very specific cases.
Police said they will identify the victims once family has been notified. Route 9 southbound was closed for about 4½ hours as police investigated.
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