BRANSON, Mo. – Police in Branson, Missouri, say a man riding a RideStar electric bike crashed on Green Mountain Drive Saturday night and died.

“This is my first one that we’ve seen or that I’ve seen in the city limits of Branson,” Lt. E.J. Jones with Branson PD said. “We believe that the E-bike had a malfunction, [the rider] then lost control of the vehicle, struck the curb, which caused him to be ejected off of the bike.”

Jones says the rider was not wearing a helmet.

“He landed, struck his head on the ground, causing extreme injury to him. He was transported to the Cox Branson Hospital where he was pronounced dead,” Jones said.

With electric bikes growing in popularity, experts are stressing proper safety.

“Make sure everything’s in check. Your controller is in check. Your brakes are in check, and most importantly, safety first. Always wear a helmet,” Chris Canote, part-owner of Totally Rad E-Bikes said. “I can’t stress enough the safety of wearing a helmet.”

Canote also says taking care of it can keep it in great running shape.

“When owning a bike, an e-bike, or even a motorcycle or car maintenance, [maintain] maintenance,” Canote said. “It’s important to always be safe on the road. So regular maintenance on any vehicle of transportation is so important.”

“Operating them safely, wearing a helmet or protective gear when you operate them is a good idea,” Jones said. “However, we don’t have an ordinance for those, so we always would encourage people to utilize safety equipment when operating a vehicle.”

Branson Police have not released the identity of the rider at this time.

Canote stressed to OzarksFirst that he and the other co-owner of Totally Rad E-Bikes send their thoughts to the family of the victim.