Hit and run suspected in Petaluma-area crash that hurt cyclist

A 70-year-old Petaluma man was seriously injured Thursday night in an Ely Road crash that CHP officers are investigating as a hit and run.

CHP officers responded at about 8:37 p.m. to a reported collision between a vehicle and a bicycle just outside Petaluma city limits on Ely Road north of Corona Road.

The victim was taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with “major but non-life-threatening injuries,” the highway patrol said in a statement.

Officers suspect the victim, who was believed to have been riding his bike northbound along the right shoulder of Ely Road, was hit by a late-model Audi Q5 SUV or similar vehicle. The driver fled after the collision, the CHP said in a statement.

Officers found auto parts near the crash site along the right shoulder - a gray side mirror, a piece of a grille - that led them to the tentative vehicle identification.

Local law enforcement is on the lookout for vehicles matching that description, CHP said.

Witnesses are asked to call the CHP office in Santa Rosa at 707-588-1400.

You can reach Staff Writer Will Schmitt at 707-521-5207 or will.schmitt@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @wsreports.