DALTON, Ga. — The Georgia State Patrol said a bicyclist from Florida remained in “severely critical” condition Wednesday afternoon after being taken by helicopter to a Chattanooga, Tenn., hospital following being struck by a sports utility vehicle on Old Dixie Highway south of Dalton Tuesday evening.

According to Cpl. Tommy Bonaparte, no charges have been filed against the driver of the SUV, and the identity of the 49-year-old bicyclist from Hawthorne, Fla., has not been released. Bonaparte said the collision remains under investigation and charges could be pending.

“He is in severely critical condition at Erlanger hospital, and a lot will determine on the outcome of his medical condition,” Bonaparte said. “According to whether or not he survives, we will have to conference with the district attorney’s office, but the case is still under investigation.”

Officers were sent to the scene of the collision on Old Dixie Highway near the intersection with Buddy Drive. The collision occurred around 6:35 p.m. and both the bicyclist and the driver of the SUV were traveling south. South of Cross Plains Boulevard, Old Dixie Highway becomes curvy, and Bonaparte said the time of day may have been a contributing factor to the collision.

“It wasn’t twilight, but that portion of the road becomes very shaded in the early evening,” Bonaparte said. “The gentleman riding the bicycle wasn’t wearing anything reflective and even though it was daylight, when you have foliage over a roadway, it is going to make some shade. (The driver) said as he was coming through the curve he had to avoid a vehicle coming the other way and as he came out of the curve, he struck the bicyclist. There was no line of sight coming through the curve.”

Bonaparte said the driver told authorities he never saw the bicyclist, who was struck by the front of the vehicle. The force of the impact vaulted the bicyclist more than 30 yards from the point of contact, and he was taken by Life Force to Erlanger.