A motorcycle accident Saturday afternoon in eastern Iowa resulted in the death of the machine’s operator. The Iowa State Patrol reports the accident happened at around 12:30-p.m. in Clayton County, when a 2003 Harley Davidson motorcycle went out of control while rounding a curve in the area of Great River Road (Clayton County Road X-56) and Pleasant Avenue, near the Pleasant Ridge Recreational Area. The cycle entered the west ditch, and continued down the ditch.

An overhead tree branch struck the head and neck area of the motorcycle’s operator and sole occupant, 62-year-old Barry R. Woodson, of Marion (Iowa), causing fatal injuries. The State Patrol was assisted at the scene by the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office, Guttenburg Police, and Holy Cross EMS.