A bicycle lies on the sidewalk at the intersection of Somerset St. E. and Sweetland Ave. The cyclist was apparently thrown from the bike and later died from his injuries. (Omar Dabaghi-Pacheco)

A 48-year-old cyclist died after he appeared to hit a curb and lost control of his bicycle, crashing in the Sandy Hill area early Thursday morning.

Ottawa police said the incident occurred at about 2:39 a.m. at the corner of Somerset St. East and Sweetland Avenue in the Sandy Hill area.

Police said they believe the man swerved off the road and onto the sidewalk, hit the curb, went over his handlebars and hit the ground.

No other vehicles were involved, police said.

"It looks like something happened while he was operating his bicycle that caused him to fall off," said Ottawa Police constable J.P. Vincelette, adding that the accident investigation was in its preliminary stages.

The man, who suffered head and neck injuries, was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police have not released the victim's name, pending notification of the next of kin.

Police said the man was not wearing a helmet at the time.

Police closed Sweetland Avenue from Osgoode Street to Templeton Street and Somerset from Nelson Street to Russell Avenue early Thursday morning but have since reopened the roads.