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chuckftboy · 02-21-2022, 05:49 PM

Sad day today. I passed a very bad wreck on I-295 beltway around Jacksonville, Fl this afternoon. One person didn't survive. The other five are being treated for injuries. After seeing it in person it's hard to imagine how anyone made it out alive.

https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/...ugustine-road/

thegats1 · 02-23-2022, 05:14 AM

Man that is awful. I'm embarrassed to admit that not all occupants in my Class A wear seat belts all of the time. I know I'm not alone. This type of thing is my biggest fear. It helps to drive safely and I don't drive over 63 mph on straight stretches, but I realize anything can happen. I don't plan on driving the coach at 79 either. But I know it may be hard to give up those keys for most of us.

MO Fred · 02-23-2022, 07:57 AM

If you work at staying active and staying healthy, there should be no reason why you can’t drive an RV at 79. I know several who drive beyond that age.

jacwjames · 02-23-2022, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MO Fred

If you work at staying active and staying healthy, there should be no reason why you can’t drive an RV at 79. I know several who drive beyond that age.

X2 on this
But there are people out there that should probably give up the keys much sooner, My FIL was one of them, made me nervous to ride with him and eventually a semi pushed off the road because he was doing 50 mph in a 75 zone. Yes it was the truckers fault but some blame could also be assigned to my FIL.

dfuelman · 02-23-2022, 08:15 AM

Tough deal for all involved. Can see the RV traveled far enough to climb the sound deadening wall before rolling over on it's side. Don't know if he was trying to get away from the 4 wheeler or had some type of medical emergency.

The wife and I just traveled this very section of I-295 a couple weeks ago.

R.I.P.

dizcom · 02-23-2022, 09:43 AM

Hard to tell anything from the article. The pics do look like the RV made it all the way to the wall and traveled up it. The MH isn't usable anymore, but it's in remarkably good shape. Even after the firefighters have extracted the passengers, it doesn't look like it's completely destroyed. Usually when we see travel trailers that have crashed, they've been blown to smithereens. This MH looks like the walls didn't collapse and the passenger compartment was spared from being crushed. Assuming that's the toad behind it, it looks like it didn't do anything except dutifully follow the MH to its stop.

77Travco · 02-23-2022, 09:57 AM

Very sad. No cause of crash looks to be determined. Driver skill, health or other cause is pure speculation so far.
I personally always wear my seatbelt when driving. My wife moves around a lot and never really wears hers in the coach unless she's up front.

MSHappyCampers · 02-23-2022, 10:55 AM

So sad, and seat belts may have saved them.

CamJam1 · 02-23-2022, 11:26 AM

It doesn't take much of a blow to the head to kill you (e.g. Bob Saget), and without seatbelts even an otherwise minor accident can result in fatalities. My condolences to the family.

DW knows not to remove her belt and go to the fridge or the bathroom unless we are on a lonesome stretch of smooth road, and I am on high alert the whole time she is unbuckled. Even at that, we should probably pull over.

Back in my SCCA racing days I had qualified on the pole at the Phoenix Raceway oval. On the pace lap I slowed and raised my hand in the air to signal for all the other cars to fall in behind me, as is customary. When I did that my safety strap caught on my harness buckle, a lever type, and unlocked it, meaning I was about to start a race, on an oval, with NO seatbelts! I immediately pulled into the pits as the green flag waved. The cars behind me didn't know whether to follow me into the pits or what.

I got my belts resecured and came out right in front of the field again, but now exactly one lap down. Our races were short enough that it would be impossible to make that lap up. I was pretty mad, but there was no way that I was going to chance it. By the next race I had replaced that harness with one that had a cam lock type buckle.

dfuelman · 02-24-2022, 07:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CamJam1

It doesn't take much of a blow to the head to kill you (e.g. Bob Saget), and without seatbelts even an otherwise minor accident can result in fatalities. My condolences to the family.

DW knows not to remove her belt and go to the fridge or the bathroom unless we are on a lonesome stretch of smooth road, and I am on high alert the whole time she is unbuckled. Even at that, we should probably pull over.

Back in my SCCA racing days I had qualified on the pole at the Phoenix Raceway oval. On the pace lap I slowed and raised my hand in the air to signal for all the other cars to fall in behind me, as is customary. When I did that my safety strap caught on my harness buckle, a lever type, and unlocked it, meaning I was about to start a race, on an oval, with NO seatbelts! I immediately pulled into the pits as the green flag waved. The cars behind me didn't know whether to follow me into the pits or what.

I got my belts resecured and came out right in front of the field again, but now exactly one lap down. Our races were short enough that it would be impossible to make that lap up. I was pretty mad, but there was no way that I was going to chance it. By the next race I had replaced that harness with one that had a cam lock type buckle.

That had to suck, but you absolutely did the right thing. Very rarely does bad news make an appointment.

NC25T · 02-24-2022, 11:52 AM

Yes there are 79 year olds that shouldn’t be driving a RV let alone a car….. just like there are many 20 something’s that also shouldn’t be driving anything.

RV looked like a older Holiday Rambler? I wonder if there was a tire failure? Or medical emergency…. Or as simple as driver error.

So sad….

ArtJoyce · 02-24-2022, 01:01 PM

So sad. We always wear seatbelts unless we are up to get something.

I hope to be driving the MH until i'm 80. But reality says statistics are against me. Years ago I did 9 month of consulting to the national AAA. In the 70's reaction time begins to noticable is diminished and insurance companies start rating the risk of senior drivers like they are teenagers.

Griffin44 · 02-24-2022, 02:43 PM

Sad situation. RIP and hope for quick recoveries.

I was a firefighter for 35 years. When discussing motor vehicle collisions with friends I have a simple maxim -- wear a seatbelt = live, no seatbelt = deceased. Almost every fatal MVC I am aware of the deceased was not wearing a seatbelt (there are a few rare exceptions). In one truly horrific incident one of my crews responded to, the two teenage girls in front were wearing seatbelts but were killed by their friend in the back seat who was not. She also died. Relatively minor collision.

Also a good idea to secure anything of any mass so it doesn't become a projectile. Rule of thumb -- if you don't want to be hit in the head with it at 50+ mph, secure it.

77Travco · 02-25-2022, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Griffin44

Sad situation. RIP and hope for quick recoveries.

I was a firefighter for 35 years. When discussing motor vehicle collisions with friends I have a simple maxim -- wear a seatbelt = live, no seatbelt = deceased. Almost every fatal MVC I am aware of the deceased was not wearing a seatbelt (there are a few rare exceptions). In one truly horrific incident one of my crews responded to, the two teenage girls in front were wearing seatbelts but were killed by their friend in the back seat who was not. She also died. Relatively minor collision.

Also a good idea to secure anything of any mass so it doesn't become a projectile. Rule of thumb -- if you don't want to be hit in the head with it at 50+ mph, secure it.

I agree with you for the most part but at the same time nothing is a given. The things me and my wife do on our motorcycles are way more dangerous than riding in our coach while not wearing a seatbelt.
I really wish she would stop with the triple digit wheelies but what can I say... she loves that kind of stuff.