A 63-year-old Ketchikan man suffered fatal injuries in a Saturday motorcycle crash on the North Tongass Highway on Saturday afternoon troopers revealed. 

Troopers report that they received a call at 2:37 pm on Saturday alerting them to a motorcycle crash with serious injuries and responded to the scene.

When they arrived at the scene, they found that 63-year-old James Schenk suffering from severe injuries and he was rushed to the hospital. He succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.

The investigation at the scene determined that Schenk had attempted to pass a van traveling northbound ahead of him in a double yellow/no passing zone. Simultaneously, that vehicle was making a left hand turn. Schenk crashed headlong into the driver’s side and suffered serious, life-threatening injuries.

“Other riders from the group stopped and attempted to render aid to Schenk until EMS arrived,” troopers said in their report.

Schenk’s next of kin were notified of the incident.

  crash, fatality, james schenk, ketchikan, motorcycle, north tongass