DERRY — A Lawrence, Mass., man died yesterday of injuries suffered in a dirt bike accident off Warner Hill Road on Sunday, only a day after becoming a U.S. citizen.
Jonathan Garcia, 21, of 157 Bennington St., a newlywed and native of the Dominican Republic, died at 11:46 a.m. at Massachusetts General Hospital, according to a hospital spokeswoman.
Garcia was riding his Suzuki 125 east on the Rockingham Trail rail beds with a friend, Danilo Gonzales, also of Lawrence, just before 11 a.m. on Sunday when he hit a tree and was thrown from the bike.
Garcia was found laying facedown in Ballard Pond, and the bike was partially submerged in the water.
Garcia was riding ahead, and Gonzales, who was on a four-wheeler, lost sight of him in a cloud of dust when Garcia turned a corner near the crossing of Warner Hill Road, according to Chris McKee, a conservation officer with the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department.
McKee said the trail was very dusty, and Gonzales told police he did not see the accident through the dirt being kicked up.
But when Gonzales came up the trail and saw no sign of Garcia, he started searching for him. Gonzales saw the tire tracks veer off the trail into the woods and into a tree.
Gonzales found Derry police Officer Jack Hall, who was patrolling the trail on an all-terrain vehicle about a quarter-mile from the accident. Hall arrived at 10:49 a.m., shortly after Garcia lost control of the dirt bike, McKee said.
Rescue workers took Garcia by ambulance to Parkland Medical Center in Derry. He was then flown by MedFlight helicopter to Massachusetts General Hospital. Derry police Officer Robert Moore said Garcia suffered serious head and chest injuries in the crash.
McKee said Fish and Game was called to the scene about 90 minutes after the accident to assist Derry police. He said the investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the crash.
Meanwhile, police impounded Garcia's bike, which will be examined to rule out mechanical problems.
Last night, Garcia's cousin, Vilma Valle, described the 2004 Lawrence High School graduate as a "very responsible, very loving" and "family-oriented" man who liked cars and has been dirt biking for four months.
"He was very into his family, very goal driven," she said.
Garcia became a U.S. citizen on Saturday, and only married his wife, Alba, three months ago, Valle said. He has been in the United States for six years. Garcia was studying criminal justice at Northern Essex Community College and aspired to become a probation officer, his cousin said.
Speaking in Spanish, Garcia's aunt, Luisa Chataro, described him as a "very good boy" and a "hard worker" who was loved by his family.
Staff writers J.J. Huggins and Paul Tennant contributed to this report.
