WALDO – A 17-year-old bicyclist was flown to a Bangor hospital with critical injuries Monday after he was struck by a pickup truck while riding his bicycle near the Waldo County Technical Center on Route 137.

Robert Sanders, 17, of Waldo had just finished a visit with his teacher and was heading toward Belfast when he was hit from behind by a 2004 Chevrolet pickup truck driven by Jeremy A. Moulton, 24, of Knox.

The accident occurred at 6:50 a.m.

Waldo County sheriff’s Chief Deputy Robert Keating said both Sanders and the pickup were headed in the same direction. Keating said it appeared that Sanders strayed into the path of the oncoming truck. He was taken by ambulance to Waldo County General Hospital in Belfast, stabilized and then taken by LifeFlight helicopter to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, where he was listed in critical condition Monday afternoon.

Deputies Ben Seekins and Gene Riga were handling the investigation. Seekins was assigned the task of reconstructing the accident.

Keating said Sanders is a student at Belfast Area High School and takes a couple of classes at the technical center. He was on his way to the high school when he was hit.