ever have a massive car crash happed right in front of you?

**cheapie** · 01-30-2009, 06:14 AM

happened to me this morning. i was driving to work on a 4-lane road in busy traffic. going probably 45-50 when an oncoming car couldn't make the curve because of the snow/ice and smashed into the cars just in front of me.

looked like a video game. cars swerving everwhere and smashing into each other. back ends popping up in the air. 4 cars totally put out of commission. 4 people injured and car parts EVERYWHERE!

i stopped, got out, called 911 and then started checking to make sure everyone was okay.

one dude was hurt and asked us to get help. one lady with blood on her face and crying.

one lady flipping out.

and the dude that caused it was unconscious. his car was mangled...both front wheels off the car and doors all crumpled up. he wasn't moving at all. i thought he was dead. me and another dude got in his car and tried to help him. he started to have a seizure and then slowly woke up.

others held his head still but was still out of it. couldn't talk. didn't know who he was or where he was.

gave my info to the cops when they got there and shakily drove to work.

yikes.

**ray** · 01-30-2009, 07:19 AM

I've had a car blow out his tire next to me going 65mph, then he did a 360 came about 6 inches from spinning into my car, before i was able to swerve into the carpool lane to avoid getting hit. He ended up coming to a complete stop in the middle of a 4 lane highway blocking the two middle lanes. This all happened in about 5-7 seconds...but luckily nobody behind him crashed into him.

**renovation** · 01-30-2009, 07:34 AM

yes seen a car roll over going around a turn once. it was like a slow motion movie. you see the car start rolling onto it's side and the people inside moving around side to side. it was a old chysler horizon new at the time.and the people were only doing like 25 mph as they turned the corner. i did get a call from chrysler on what i seen.never heard anything after the phone call.im sure they settle out of court. there was a very young child in the car and i know i seen the childs head tap the side glass window. at the time i do remember this was a car the people rented.

**cheapie** · 01-30-2009, 07:43 AM

crappy pics because i didn't want to be a jackass and stand there block things taking my time.

**eSDee** · 01-30-2009, 08:22 AM

Good job cheapie. Sounds like you helped a lot.

**MrGreg** · 01-30-2009, 08:45 AM

Going up the mountain a few years ago a jeep liberty lost control in front of me, hit the snowband, and flipped. Ended up on its roof in the middle of the road. Nobody was hurt, but they were freaked out. The woman driving vomited after she climbed out. I lent them the blanket I keep in the back of my car until the cops showed up.

**Yossarian** · 01-30-2009, 08:50 AM

my last day at work, i'm driving in, roads are fine. i'm behind an older S-10 doing about 35-40. I see the civic and immediately yell 'don't do it!' she pulls out from the right side coming across our lane to go the other way; she never even looked. he laid on his horn and tried to swerve around her, but no way it was helping.

i get out, and goto the civic first, and my mind is just going. i've seen accidents before(my dad's a volunteer FF, i used to go with him on calls growing up) but this is my first witness/first responder. i know how bad it can be, and i'm trying to steel myself to be able to put up with it.

the crease on the hood of the S-10 hit dead center on the girl driving, right on her head. it blew the window out and she whacked her head off the hood. she and the passenger are crying, and she's got a small cut from the hood, but thats it. i get them to get out the passenger side, and then head to the S-10, no one has opened his doors yet.

his airbags went off and the first thing i smell when the door opens is dust. fack me do those things smell. she's dazed and probably broke his nose, but he's able to crawl out the passenger side with my help.

i swear if anyone any taller than that guy had been in that truck, they'd still be in the hospital with 2 broken legs at least. the force pushed his entire front end back about 6 inches.

**ArkiStan** · 01-30-2009, 09:32 AM

Originally Posted by cheapie

and the dude that caused it was unconscious. his car was mangled...both front wheels off the car and doors all crumpled up. he wasn't moving at all. i thought he was dead. me and another dude got in his car and tried to help him. he started to have a seizure and then slowly woke up.

others held his head still but was still out of it. couldn't talk. didn't know who he was or where he was.

Good job man. I prob would have tried to do the same thing. But it seems like some don't recommend the above until the medics arrive due to the risk of further injury. What's the consensus on that?

**cheapie** · 01-30-2009, 09:43 AM

well...that's kind of what i was thinking since he was fairly combative. once he settled down i would have done that.

i'm in the ski patrol so we do a lot of holding c-spine and backboarding and i can tell you it's useless trying to hold someone's head still if they don't want you to. and the harder you try to hold them still, the more they fight it, esp when they're in an altered state.

**ShawnLee** · 01-30-2009, 10:12 AM

That's good Cheapie, I'm glad you were there to help. Those pics look narly. I can only hope that I'll have people as good around me, that is if I'm ever in as bad a situation.

My brother and I once saw a Mitsubishi Montero (I think?) flip over a few times in front of us while we were in the carpool lane.
The car in front of us just stopped. The driver looked like he was freaking out. And then he drove off. Idiot. He got in the way of other people helping too.
Fortunately, a bunch of us got out and helped the driver of the Mitsubishi out. She was cut up with some blood, and crying. All understandable. For a second, I thought she'd lost a lot of blood because she was a black woman who looked really ashen, but I realized that it was the powder from the airbag.

**The Happy Squirrel** · 01-30-2009, 12:01 PM

nice work cheapie!! never seen a bad one happen, other then the one iw as in myself gone by right after many time like i was the second car to stop cars were all mangled up there were parts from one car attached to other cars in the oppisite ditch

**cheapie** · 01-30-2009, 12:11 PM

thanks....but i really didn't do anything. just tried to keep the victims calm until the cops/ambulance arrived.

**ArkiStan** · 01-30-2009, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by cheapie

well...that's kind of what i was thinking since he was fairly combative. once he settled down i would have done that.

i'm in the ski patrol so we do a lot of holding c-spine and backboarding and i can tell you it's useless trying to hold someone's head still if they don't want you to. and the harder you try to hold them still, the more they fight it, esp when they're in an altered state.

well sounds like you clearly knew what you were doing. once again good job. even as a spectator, i bet most people would have a hard time staying calm to make the right decisions.

**GraingerGuy** · 01-30-2009, 02:31 PM

Almost....

Was driving to Sacramento airport, the car in front of me suddenly spins out and ends up perpendicular to the freeway...somehow the guy put it in reverse and drove up a little hill to avoid being hit. Scary...

Way to help out Cheapie!

**ufcrusher** · 01-30-2009, 03:26 PM

Unfortunately, I have seen tons of really bad accidents. I watched a Ford F150 slam on its brakes and the front end. dipped. The Firebird that was behind him was following too closely and ended up trying to slam on its brakes at the last minute. As a result the F150's back wheels went up the hood of the Firebird and end up on the roof completely crushing the Firebird.

While on I95 I saw a 40 car pile up happen. Unfortunately, there were people ejected from the cars.

I have seen many other bad accidents, but I would rather not think about it.

**InfiniteNothing** · 01-30-2009, 03:49 PM

Wow UFC, you must be bad luck. Remind me to stay away when you're on the road.

Crazy accident Cheapie. Siezures scare me.

**uncledaddy** · 01-30-2009, 09:33 PM

Way to go, cheapie. I once had a Beetle speed past me on the right lane on the freeway, I noticed a rig entering on the right and I knew the Beetle wouldn't make it. Sure enough, the bug turned a quick 45 and I saw it tumbling down the interstate up ahead. By the time I got to where the bug landed, which was upside down, the driver was out and jumping up and down, cussing up a storm.

**clutchy** · 01-30-2009, 11:35 PM

I have 2 actually.

The first i was in highschool at a gas station and was watching the road in front of me. All of a sudden i hear this squealing of tires and see this SUV bearing down on an escort and then he hits him, ramps up and over the car and flips in the air and then hits the ground and rolled a couple of times... unreal actually. Ran over to help and they were pulling the guy out of the escort which was completely smeared. Guy was dead and i found out later that it was a guy i knew in highschool... directed traffic for about 45mins.

The 2nd happened up in northern california and this was the car directly in front of me. Wife was driving. The girl in this acura integra leaned down to look for something and when she looked up she was heading for a concrete pillar. She over compensated and sent her car into a spin. She hit the wall bounced off, and then spun around and hit it again... my wife who reacted extremely poorly tried to accelerate in 5th gear(std) going 30 miles an hour and try to clear her but wasn't able to b/c she didn't shift. I'm screaming at her to brake as we're heading straight into the side of this girls car. Fortunately she bounced off the wall again and somehow we cleared her. We just kept driving.

**guiseppewv** · 01-31-2009, 12:43 PM

Good job, cheapie! It is always better when someone who is trained is one of the first people on the scene.

I have seen three different bad accidents. The last one was ~6 years ago.

I was driving near where I work now (I was just heading home after an interview) and traffic came to a stop on one of the 4 lanes on the highway but the other 3 lanes were moving at ~40-50 mph. This dude in front of me driving an Acura CL tried to shoot out of our lane and into one of the moving lanes. He got plowed from behind. The rear end of the car was smashed all the way to the driver's compartment. Luckily nobody was in the back seat or they would have been dead. The guy was shaken up and pissed (I am sure he was really sore later when the adrenalin wore off) at the person who hit him. Everyone who was there called the guy a dumb ass.

The worst was a one car accident when I was in college at home on winter break. A car was going around a sharp turn in the snow at way too fast of a speed (I think the drivers were drinking) and they flew off the road over the hill and smashed into about 6 trees. The car was all sorts of messed up. My friend and I called 911 and then administered first aid. We both were CPR and first aid certified at the time b/c both of us were lifeguards and iceguards [never understood that name because we were not guarding the ice, we were guarding the people skating on the ice!]. The couple that was in car was all sorts of messed up. I never did find out what happened to them because I went back to school the next day.

**ufcrusher** · 02-01-2009, 09:50 PM

I forgot the one where the Explorer going southbound on I-5 flipped and took out another car. (2003)

Driving to Mardi Gras on I-10 a car full of flashing women suddenly went off the road in front of us. They went into a large grass wash and spun out, but no one was hurt. (1995)

Driving southbound on I-95 I watched as a North bound motorcylist with passenger was hit by another vehicle. The driver flew over the divider and into southbound traffic. The passenger was hit by 4 cars. Neither survived and it made me swear I would never buy a motorcycle. (something I have wanted to do forever)This was in 2000.

I watched my best friend have a 100 ft plus elm tree fall onto his Mercury Lynx as we were driving to school one day. (he escaped without any injury, but was late to homeroom)

Yep, I have seen lots of bad accidents in person.

**Nija** · 02-02-2009, 05:16 AM

Mental Note: Never get in a car with ufcrusher.

**dsuds** · 02-02-2009, 08:02 PM

When I was about 12 years old we were going to a drive-in movie. Sitting in the long driveway waiting to pay and go in. I was looking out the back window and a car comes flying up the road. The driver loses control and hits the culvert on the driveway. The car flips several times and comes to rest in the grass about 100 ft away. One person was killed and the others in the car were seriously injured.

**uncledaddy** · 02-02-2009, 09:04 PM

Originally Posted by Nija

Mental Note: Never get in a car with ufcrusher.

Or in a car that is near ufcrusher.

**clutchy** · 02-03-2009, 08:38 PM

some guy crashed into the retaining wall on the freeway today behind us...

**ufcrusher** · 02-04-2009, 10:56 PM

Originally Posted by clutchy

some guy crashed into the retaining wall on the freeway today behind us...

I swear I wasnt there.

**clutchy** · 02-05-2009, 07:26 AM

Originally Posted by ufcrusher

I swear I wasnt there.

hehe... sure you weren't

**The Happy Squirrel** · 02-06-2009, 07:59 AM

forgot one. Was working one day back in oh-2. Saw a motorcyclist get hit by a semi as the bke was crossing the freeway. Semi was doing bout 65 or so. im guessing they never found all the pieces, all you could see was a red spray and the bike parts pop out the back end

**uncledaddy** · 02-06-2009, 09:18 PM

Originally Posted by The Happy Squirrel

forgot one. Was working one day back in oh-2. Saw a motorcyclist get hit by a semi as the bke was crossing the freeway. Semi was doing bout 65 or so. im guessing they never found all the pieces, all you could see was a red spray and the bike parts pop out the back end

Dude, that's sick. The bike parts popped out of the guys back end?