A OREGON couple died last week while biking after they were struck by lumber that fell off the bed of a truck passing by. 

Chilling photos of the scene show their mangled and broken bikes laying on the side of the road. 

Michelle and Christian Deaton died on October 17 while biking along the Silverado Trail outside Napa, California. 

The couple, from Portland, had been married for 21 years and both worked for Nike in Beaverton, Oregon. 

As they biked through the wine country last week around 11 a.m., a flatbed 2018 Freightliner truck attempted to pass them while traveling at around 40 mph, according to The Oregonian. 

As the motorist drove past the cyclists, lumber in the back of the truck shifted to the right. 

Then, some of the wood hung off the back of the flatbed and hit the Deatons, highway patrol told the outlet. 

Immediately after, the driver pulled over to the side of the road and remained on scene. 

Christian, 52, was pronounced dead at the scene while Michelle, 48, was taken to a hospital where she later succumbed to her wounds. 

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Highway Patrol is currently investigating the incident. 

The driver of the flatbed truck has not been publicly identified, however, reports have said he was a man from Vallejo. 

Police have also not revealed whether the driver will face criminal charges over the incident. 

Kara Vernor, the executive director of the bike safety organization Napa County Bicycle Coalition, told The Oregonian that the speed limit in the area is 55 mph. 

Vernor explained that due to common incidents of speeding and driving under the influence, some bikers avoid that specific stretch of the Silverado Trail before noon.

“To see two people lose their lives in this manner is really tragic and unsettling,” Vernor said. 

Friends of the Deatons have described the married couple as loving and “pretty damn close to perfect.” 

Friend Chloee Thompson told The Oregonian that the couple loved to travel together and tried to stay active daily. 

“Life was their hobby – there was never a moment where they weren’t going to make the most of it,” Thompson said. 

“They lived life so big that the hole that they left in all of us is just gaping. The two of them weren’t perfect and they always strove to be better, but they really were pretty damn close to perfect.”

Another friend, Elizbaeth LeMay, told the outlet that the couple had a lot of love for eachother. 

“They were a couple you come across once in a lifetime.”