Neverhoodian Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 You never know what life will throw at you. My father is a UPS driver. He delivers packages in an area in the mountains about thirty-five miles away from where I live. Earlier today, he had a head-on collision with a car whose driver was clearly taking unnecessary risks to say the least. My dad first saw the car as he was rounding a turn on a narrow mountain road. The man was passing someone on a double yellow line and was driving so fast that his vehicle was fishtailing. My dad took his foot off the gas immediately, but he really couldn't do anything even if he wanted to. The driver overcompensated and ended up skidding sideways, with the passenger end smashing full force into the front of my dad's UPS truck. The combined velocity was probably in excess of 80 miles per hour, with the car accounting for a good 55 to 60 of them. Needless to say, both vehicles were totaled. As luck would have it, there was someone nearby who quickly informed both the authorities and my mother and I about the situation. My father was taken to the nearest hospital. Luckily, he only had very minor superficial injuries on the legs. The man driving the car, however, was not so lucky. When my dad was waiting for authorities to arrive, he went to look into the other vehicle. The other man wasn't wearing a seatbelt. It only took my dad one look to see that the man was dead, hurled into the back seat with his head buried in the cushion. My mom and I spent a good three hours at the hospital waiting for my dad's release while the sheriff and the UPS management worked out the details. Fortunately, there were many witnesses of the accident, all of whom said that the driver of the car was clearly to blame. My dad's back home now, and everything's starting to return to normalcy. He's pretty sore, but otherwise in fine shape. I'm sad for the friends and family of the deceased, however, knowing that nothing can bring their loved one back. The full impact still hasn't hit me yet. Thanks for taking the time to read this post. I just felt that I had to tell you guys about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troopr-Undr-Fir Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Things like this are odd. You don't know the person, but you feel very saddend by the fact they have a fatal accident. If only people would stop complaining about the DMV and their rules. This is why they are there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TK-8252 Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Speed kills. Glad that your dad's safe. And it's good that there's no charges being pressed. Must be a hell of paperwork though. Unfortunant for the other guy. If only he had taken two seconds to buckle up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ET Warrior Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Indeed, i'm very glad your dad is okay, and I feel sorry for the deceased. I can attest to the goodness of seatbelts, as I myself was in a recent wreck as many of you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IG-64 Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 In the words of Treebeard: "Now, now, don't be hasty." I feel sorry for that guy. He couldv'e saved his own precious life if he would've just taken the time to put on his seat belt, stay in the right lane, and keep at the speed limit. And what he thought wouldv'e been just a quick little arbitrary dicision to save himself some time and grief turned out to be his death. I'm glad your dads ok, and no one else was hurt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Windu Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 I'm very happy that your father is fine. Gosh. I have never been in a wreck. it must be so frightening... Keep us updated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BongoBob Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 damn dude, that's insane. I hope that this doesn't emotionally effect your dad along the road Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wassup Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Ignorance is deadly. Why the other guy was going that fast on a narrow mountain road, without a seatbelt, is beyond me. It's a good thing your father was driving a large, heavy truck. I hope you and your family get through this okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rogue15 Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 geez i hate when people drive like that...when the hell are people gonna start buckling up? it takes like what? 2 seconds?! i've got a habit of wearing a seat belt whenever i am in a car, front or back seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon_hill987 Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Hey Kids, always use your seatbelt. Glad your dads Ok. Just shows what a seatbelt can do. you just have to hope you never need them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astrotoy7 Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 glad your dad is ok. Is he going to talk to anyone about it ?? even a couple of debrief sessions with a counsellor helps get things in perspective and eases the process of dealing with the effects this can have psychologically... condolences to the family of the other man mtfbwya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabretooth Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Glad to know your dad's okay. "Death of one man is a tragedy, death of a million is a statistic." -Lenin, or Stalin or somebody... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neverhoodian Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Thanks for the feedback, everyone. My dad's doing very well, both physically and emotionally. He's sad that it happened, but he knows he isn't to blame for the accident, so he's not suffering from any guilt. He's sometimes wondered how he would react to something like this (two other drivers at the center have also been in accidents in the past where someone died), and he's somewhat suprized at how well he's taking it. I know this may sound wierd, but I told him that, in a way, it may have been fortunate that he was the one who got hit. If someone else had been in his place driving a smaller vehicle, there would have been two fatalities instead of one. Things are kind of hectic at home right now. The incident was printed in the local newspaper and broadcast on the local news, so my dad's currently answering a bunch of phone calls from concerned friends and family. He's feeling very good right now and may even be able to go back to work as early as Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ET Warrior Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 There have already been people who said how stupid he was. And he was stupid. Mountain driving is a dangerous thing, even when you ARE driving correctly. To be speeding and passing on a double yellow around a blind turn is absolutely rediculous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samuel Dravis Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 I'm glad your dad's ok. I'm sorry for the other guy's family, though. They shouldn't have had this happen to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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