Thursday, November 6, 2008

Things That Scare the Crap Out of Me

Yesterday, on the Gardiner Expressway - a highway that I drive on frequently, literally 15 minutes from my house - a truck carrying copper tubes and wires driving on the 427 overpass fell off the overpass and onto the highway below, crushing cars.

The truck was heading south toward the eastbound Gardiner Expressway when its trailer detached, burst through the guardrail and plummeted about 20 metres onto the QEW.

The trailer crushed four cars and scattered an estimated 25,000 kilograms of tubes and wires across three lanes of traffic, shutting down the highway and nearby arteries for most of the day. The highway reopened last night.

After losing its trailer, the truck hit a guardrail before coming to a stop further along on the ramp, Woodford said. (http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/531604)

This makes my crash seem minute.
Can you imagine driving and having a truck falling on you!? I had nightmares about this happening long before this really happened.
It's just so close to home... I could have been driving there!

See pictures here.

They are blaming driver fatigue and mechanical issues. So, please, everyone, don't drive if you're tired! Being responsible for causing a terrible crash would be so terrible, and being responsible for someone's death would be even worse.
Please be so careful driving. I don't believe in the term "accident," crashes are not accidents. If everyone was driving safely, this would not happen.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Three things -
1) did you recently change your background? I just noticed it, and love it!
2) "Merry Happy" by Kate Nash - LOVE THAT!
3) I remember the feelings I had when I found out our main bridge that ran over the Mississippi River through downtown Minneapolis FELL into the river, killing 13. That was just over a year ago, less than 1 mile from my office and was a route MANY of us take all the time. I know so many stories that sound like, "I missed that by 20 minutes," etc., and that's so unnerving. I can't blame you for being shaken - that's scary! And very sad.