Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Agua Dulce Bicyclist, 13, Killed by Van Along Sierra Highway

A van struck a 13-year-old bicyclist on Sierra Highway Wednesday, killing him, authorities said.

Kevin Martin, of Agua Dulce, apparently was swerving back and forth for unknown reasons as he rode a BMX-type bicycle south on the right shoulder of the two-lane road, said Highway Patrol Officer Ruben DeAvila. A van driven about 40 m.p.h. came alongside Kevin, striking him, just north of Shady Lane Road at about 4:15 p.m.

“At this point we don’t know if the van veered and hit the kid or the kid veered and hit the van,” DeAvila said.

Several of Kevin’s friends who gathered at the accident scene, unaware of the severity of his injuries, described him as a quiet, home-schooled youth.

“He pretty much kept to himself,” said Frank Keehner, 14, who lives near Kevin’s house.

The van’s driver, Mark Graham, 45, was driving below the speed limit and was not cited, although the investigation into the accident was still being conducted Wednesday evening, DeAvila said.

Witnesses tried to make Kevin comfortable and were talking to him when emergency workers arrived a few minutes later, said Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Juan Gonzalez. He said the teen-ager was conscious, but had suffered severe injuries to his torso and complained of difficulty breathing.

“He was pale and it was extremely hard to get any vital signs out of him,” Gonzalez said.

Kevin’s heart stopped about 15 minutes later, with firefighters performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation on him as a rescue helicopter arrived. The boy was airlifted to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital in Valencia, where he was pronounced dead.