Motorcycle Officer Seriously Hurt in Collision With Van

A motorcycle officer was seriously hurt Thursday afternoon when a van struck him in an intersection, police said.

Los Angeles Police Officer Christopher Blankenship, 27, was traveling south on Woodman Avenue when he was hit by a van that was attempting to turn left onto Woodman from Vesper Avenue, said Sgt. Russell Carr of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Valley Traffic Division.

Blankenship, also of Valley Traffic, was in serious condition at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, hospital spokeswoman Tiffany Devall said.

The officer suffered a broken arm, dislocated hip, and possible abdominal and head injuries, LAPD Officer Don Cox said.

The van’s driver, whom police declined to identify, was unhurt.

Investigators have not yet determined which person was at fault in the 3:30 p.m. crash, Cox said. Blankenship was not pursuing a traffic violator at the time of the accident, he said.

There is no light at the intersection.

“Right here [on Vesper], a lot of times people don’t even stop when they’re making a left,” said Myeshia Thorns, 22, who lives a few houses away.

Another motorcycle officer was seriously hurt in 1997 just north of the intersection when he was struck by a car traveling north on Woodman.

Motorcycle officers frequently patrol the street, which police consider a prime spot for speeders.