A hero cop who saved victims during the worst mass shooting in modern US history has died after a motorbike crash.
Chad Swanson, a Manhattan Beach police officer, was riding his bike when he was struck by a car on a Los Angeles-area highway on Wednesday, cops say.
It was likely he was heading out to work shortly before the crash at 5am on Interstate 405 in Carson, California Highway Patrol said in a statement.
Officer Steve Carapia said it appeared Swanson’s police motorcycle was struck by another vehicle that likely made “an unsafe lane change”.
Authorities added that it was still being investigated as to whether or not a fourth vehicle may have been involved.
According to Southern Californian News Group, the 35-year-old died at the hospital.
As a result of the crash, a second person was hospitalized with minor injuries.
Manhattan Beach Police Lt. Kelly Benjamin described how the force was “hurting…grieving” in a tribute to the married father-of-three.
Swanson will be remembered for his heroic actions on October 1, 2017, when he was off-duty and in the crowd at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas.
At the show, gunman Stephen Paddock, 64, opened fire from a window of the nearby Mandalay Bay hotel at people attending the festival.
The crowd was made up of 22,000 concertgoers. Sixty died and a further 867 others were injured, including at least 413 by gunfire.
In her tribute, Benjamin recalled how Swanson helped protect the shooting victims by moving them out of the area.
Swanson had been with the department for 13 years, becoming a motorcycle officer in 2017.
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