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Ridiculous Accidents

We must have an FTMB member who is local to the scene that can go down there and report back, with pictures, surely????

Am I right in thinking that @cycleboy2 is our resident 'Bath' journo???
 
He said "Gor blimey Maireeeee...."

Dick Van Dyke crashes his car into a gate in Malibu.
Hollywood legend Dick Van Dyke reportedly lost control of his car and crashed into a gate on Wednesday morning, TMZ first reported.
The 97-year-old is said to have lost control of the wheel of his Lexus over wet streets in Malibu, California, recently drenched by rain.


But the following paragraph from further down the article is why I'm posting it here.
DVD is a 'lad', isn't he?

In 2010, in an interview with Craig Ferguson, the then-84-year-old recalled an incident where he drifted out to sea after he fell asleep atop his surfboard. In an incident that could have been a scene cut from Mary Poppins: Beach Vacation, he said a group of friendly porpoises helped push his board closer to shore.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-65038802
 
Yup, that happens!

Quoting myself'ere -

My youngest, Escette, works in the metal-testing industry. She has shared some gruesome tales which I will dig out for Board delectation.

The most recent was about an experienced, well-trained tester who managed to insert his hand into a high-pressure press. Escette is a first aider and although she was not first on the scene she assisted and was able to ring 999 and organise the ambulance.

As in, 'Has the entire hand been struck?' 'Yes.' 'How is the bleeding?' 'There's not much.' 'That will be because the blood vessels have been crushed closed. Can you see any fingers?' etc.

Although Escette was not present at the accident she did see it later on the CCTV recording.

She said the guy stuck his hand under the press to pick something up and about a second later when it was crushed he yanked it back and stared at it, or what was left of it. Like when a girl admires her engagement ring. Only there was no ring. Or finger.
Mind you, these accidents can have their advantages. Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath) lost part of his fingertips on one hand in a machine and therefore had to alter his style of playing guitar and thereby getting that 'Black Sabbath' sound.
 
Mind you, these accidents can have their advantages. Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath) lost part of his fingertips on one hand in a machine and therefore had to alter his style of playing guitar and thereby getting that 'Black Sabbath' sound.
Yup, the accident seemed like a total disaster at the time. Like a trouper, he tried improvising fingertips from washing-up bottles.

Not sure having one's fingers crushed would be of help in most occupations though.
 
A guy on one of my sites last week was attempting to manoeuvre a precast concrete panel into place. The panel, weighing 2 tons, slipped off its top fixings just as the guy put his hand under the bottom of the panel, a definite no no. They lifted the panel off his hand sufficiently enough for him to wriggle it out of his glove which remained trapped. Unfortunately a bit of finger was still inside.
The hospital are rebuilding three of his fingers to the best of their ability, he will be off work and not earning for several weeks and will have trouble picking his nose with that hand in future, and we have another RIDDOR reportable accident to add to the list.
It doesn’t matter how much training and instruction you give to these guys, there is always a chance instinct will take over and they do something silly, like put a hand under a suspended load.
The injured man’s employer, a subbie to one of our contractors, has advised the injury doesn’t need reporting under RIDDOR as he has returned to work within seven days and is undertaking his normal work activities. Conveniently it is not on our site for us to confirm, and means they don’t have to add it to their reportable accident statistics.

I have a sneaking suspicion someone is telling porkies.
 
The injured man’s employer, a subbie to one of our contractors, has advised the injury doesn’t need reporting under RIDDOR as he has returned to work within seven days and is undertaking his normal work activities. Conveniently it is not on our site for us to confirm, and means they don’t have to add it to their reportable accident statistics.

I have a sneaking suspicion someone is telling porkies.
They may not being telling porkies. It still has to be recorded in the accident book though.

https://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/reportable-incidents.htm
 
They may not being telling porkies. It still has to be recorded in the accident book though.

https://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/reportable-incidents.htm
The guy has to return to work and undertake his usual work activities within seven days for it not to be reportable.
The update I had from those investigating the accident and the details of the injury tell me that guy will not be doing the day job for some time. The safety director for our contractor rang me at home to tell me the guy would not be fit for work for a few weeks, possibly more if surgery was involved.
Companies don’t like reporting under RIDDOR as it messes up the accident stats they are asked to disclose and could potentially lead to lost job opportunities.

As for accident books…they are usually completed by the Brothers Grimm.
 
From L.A. Video.
Jeez that is some serious smashing there. Loose wheels and tyres, and contact between wheels, are to be avoided.
This compilation of crashes in motorsport has multiple examples of open wheels touching and causing massive accidents.
I've selected one here at about 1.40 but there are plenty others included in the film.
 
The gruesome pictures are at the link.
https://nos.nl/artikel/2468975-vier...itse-snelweg-a3-bij-ongeluk-met-drie-porsches

Four Dutch killed on German A3 motorway in accident involving three Porsches

Four Dutch people were killed in an accident on the German A3 motorway near Emmerich, just across the German-Dutch border. They are three men aged 39, 42 and 56 and a woman aged 37. A fifth occupant suffered minor injuries.

The accident involved three Porsches with Dutch registration plates. They were driving on the A3 towards Cologne at around 10.45 this morning when the 42-year-old driver from Voorhout of a Porsche Cayman lost control of the wheel and ended up in a ditch. The woman was also in that car.

It had rained hard shortly before and there was a lot of water on the road. A spokesman for the German police said there was probably aquaplaning, where tyres lose grip on the wet road surface.

One of the other two drivers, a 39-year-old man from Nieuwegein, saw it happen and stopped to offer help. At that time, the driver of the third Porsche, a 56-year-old man from Waterland, also lost control on the same stretch of road and rammed the others.

As a result, the female passenger (37) of the Porsche that had crashed first and the man who tried to help were killed instantly. The drivers later succumbed, one in the trauma helicopter and one in hospital.

In the Porsche 911 that collided with the others was another man. His age has not been disclosed. According to German police, he was slightly injured. Through him, police hope to hear more about the exact circumstances of the accident.

The A3 to Cologne was closed until early evening due to trace investigations and clearing the debris.

A police spokesman said the accident may have occurred because the cars had not adjusted their speed to the water on the road. The Porsches were presumably part of a group, but there are no indications that they were racing. There are also no indications of alcohol or drug use or a street race.

More:
https://nos.nl/artikel/2469056-schrik-verdriet-en-vragen-na-fataal-porsche-ongeluk-op-duitse-snelweg

Although the investigation is still ongoing, police suspect that aquaplaning played a major role. In this phenomenon, a tyre loses grip on a wet road surface. A vehicle then becomes temporarily uncontrollable.

Sports cars, such as the Porsche 911, have been found to be more susceptible to aquaplaning than other cars. The combination of high power, fairly wide wheels, rear-wheel drive and a light vehicle means that grip loss is more likely to occur.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
 
Jeez that is some serious smashing there. Loose wheels and tyres, and contact between wheels, are to be avoided.
This compilation of crashes in motorsport has multiple examples of open wheels touching and causing massive accidents.
I've selected one here at about 1.40 but there are plenty others included in the film.
Good grief!
Hope there were no fatalities amongst those terrifying crashes.
 
Hope there were no fatalities amongst those terrifying crashes.
Oh there definitely were in several of them. Or drivers succumbing to their injuries some time afterwards.
Motorsports are dangerous. It says so on the ticket.
 
Sports cars, such as the Porsche 911,
Were designed many years ago, before discovering what we know now about the physics of crashes and how to build safe cars with effective crumple zones etc.
Also rear-engined Porsches are inherently unstable when there is a loss of control because all of the weight hangs out behind the rear axle, so once even a slight amount of lateral movement on a slick surface is introduced there is an element of 'pendulum effect' that takes over and then you're sliding straight to the scene of the accident.
It doesn't help when drivers are driving beyond their ability and going way too fast for the conditions too.
 
The gruesome pictures are at the link.
https://nos.nl/artikel/2468975-vier...itse-snelweg-a3-bij-ongeluk-met-drie-porsches

Four Dutch killed on German A3 motorway in accident involving three Porsches

Four Dutch people were killed in an accident on the German A3 motorway near Emmerich, just across the German-Dutch border. They are three men aged 39, 42 and 56 and a woman aged 37. A fifth occupant suffered minor injuries.

The accident involved three Porsches with Dutch registration plates. They were driving on the A3 towards Cologne at around 10.45 this morning when the 42-year-old driver from Voorhout of a Porsche Cayman lost control of the wheel and ended up in a ditch. The woman was also in that car.

It had rained hard shortly before and there was a lot of water on the road. A spokesman for the German police said there was probably aquaplaning, where tyres lose grip on the wet road surface.

One of the other two drivers, a 39-year-old man from Nieuwegein, saw it happen and stopped to offer help. At that time, the driver of the third Porsche, a 56-year-old man from Waterland, also lost control on the same stretch of road and rammed the others.

As a result, the female passenger (37) of the Porsche that had crashed first and the man who tried to help were killed instantly. The drivers later succumbed, one in the trauma helicopter and one in hospital.

In the Porsche 911 that collided with the others was another man. His age has not been disclosed. According to German police, he was slightly injured. Through him, police hope to hear more about the exact circumstances of the accident.

The A3 to Cologne was closed until early evening due to trace investigations and clearing the debris.

A police spokesman said the accident may have occurred because the cars had not adjusted their speed to the water on the road. The Porsches were presumably part of a group, but there are no indications that they were racing. There are also no indications of alcohol or drug use or a street race.

More:
https://nos.nl/artikel/2469056-schrik-verdriet-en-vragen-na-fataal-porsche-ongeluk-op-duitse-snelweg

Although the investigation is still ongoing, police suspect that aquaplaning played a major role. In this phenomenon, a tyre loses grip on a wet road surface. A vehicle then becomes temporarily uncontrollable.

Sports cars, such as the Porsche 911, have been found to be more susceptible to aquaplaning than other cars. The combination of high power, fairly wide wheels, rear-wheel drive and a light vehicle means that grip loss is more likely to occur.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
I've experienced aquaplaning that should have been lethal but wasn't. This would probably have been about 15 years ago. My grandmother used to live in Frimley, and my wife and I used to visit regularly on weekends, a journey that involved taking either 3 trains or 2 buses. On this occasion we went by train (which allowed us to return home later). In the evening there were torrential rainstorms, so our middle train running from Aldershot to Guildford was cancelled because the line had flooded. The station manager was excellent, and ordered a large taxi for the 5 passengers trying to get back to Guildford. The taxi driver took the A31 Hogs Back towards Guildford and soon after joining the road, probably somewhere between the Tongham roundabout and the Hog's Back Hotel, the taxi (which was driving far too fast for the conditions) hit an invisible patch of standing water and aquaplaned, doing a full 360 spin at high speed across multiple lanes of traffic without hitting anything, ended up facing the direction of travel at which point the driver regained control and carried on as if nothing had happened, leaving 5 white-faced passengers rapidly deciding that they ought to fasten their seatbelts in a hurry. I can hardly believe that I'm still alive sometimes!
 
I've experienced aquaplaning that should have been lethal but wasn't. This would probably have been about 15 years ago. My grandmother used to live in Frimley, and my wife and I used to visit regularly on weekends, a journey that involved taking either 3 trains or 2 buses. On this occasion we went by train (which allowed us to return home later). In the evening there were torrential rainstorms, so our middle train running from Aldershot to Guildford was cancelled because the line had flooded. The station manager was excellent, and ordered a large taxi for the 5 passengers trying to get back to Guildford. The taxi driver took the A31 Hogs Back towards Guildford and soon after joining the road, probably somewhere between the Tongham roundabout and the Hog's Back Hotel, the taxi (which was driving far too fast for the conditions) hit an invisible patch of standing water and aquaplaned, doing a full 360 spin at high speed across multiple lanes of traffic without hitting anything, ended up facing the direction of travel at which point the driver regained control and carried on as if nothing had happened, leaving 5 white-faced passengers rapidly deciding that they ought to fasten their seatbelts in a hurry. I can hardly believe that I'm still alive sometimes!
Yep me too. A few months after I'd passed my test, driving too quickly with a car full of mates on a wet road towards a T-junction and suddenly the brakes and steering didn't work, lasted around 5 seconds I reckon, but a very very long five seconds. Cue hysteria in the car as I remained paranormally calm and then at the last moment I got traction again and whipped it around a wall into a driveway having sped across the junction. Terrifying, and have never experienced aquaplaning since. Everyone piled out of the car and urinated as soon as I managed to stop (and thankfully not before). Back to basics. Glad (and amazed) to be alive.
 

Cops responding to wrong address shoot homeowner dead at his door

In Farmington, New Mexico.

They went to number 5305 instead of 5308 on a domestic violence call. The homeowner answered the door with a handgun & was shot by the police.

‘Body camera footage shows as the officers backed away from 5305 Valley View Avenue, the homeowner, Robert Dotson, 52, opened the screen door armed with a handgun,’ stated the state police department. ‘At this point in the encounter, officer(s) fired at least one round from their duty weapon(s) striking Mr Dotson.’

Dotson’s wife, who also had a handgun, then shot from the doorway and exchanged gunfire with the cops.

‘Once she realized that the individuals outside the residence were officers, she put the gun down and complied with the officer’s commands,’ according to state police.

Her husband was pronounced dead at the scene.

‘I am just heartbroken… Mr Dotson was not the subject of this call,’ said Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe in a video on Facebook on Thursday. ‘This ending is just unbelievably tragic. I’m extremely sorry that we’re in this position.’

‘There’s nothing I can say that will make this better,’ Hebbe said. ‘It’s a terrible event, and I’m heartbroken over it.’
 
Off. Clean off.

There are photos on several websites. Later reports say nobody was badly hurt.
Could have been horrific.

Double decker bus has roof ripped off in Eccles bridge crash
A double decker bus had its roof ripped off after hitting a bridge in Salford.
It happened on Barton Lane in Eccles at about 21:45 BST on Monday, Greater Manchester Police said.
The road, which runs under the Bridgewater Canal, is closed in both directions until the damage can be assessed and repaired, the force added.
It is unclear if anyone was injured. In a statement Diamond Bus North West said that the "incident is under investigation"
 
OMG! looks as if a tin opener was used!
Yup, it's comprehensive innit! :omg:

There can't have been any passengers onboard, upstairs anyway, as they'd've been summarily beheaded.

My pure, ignorant speculation here is that the bus was not in service, and as it wasn't on a passenger route the driver decided to take a short cut. This is normally how it happens.
 
Off. Clean off.

There are photos on several websites. Later reports say nobody was badly hurt.
Could have been horrific.

Double decker bus has roof ripped off in Eccles bridge crash

OK, here’s the approach to said bridge. Note that the authorities have supplied not only big warning signs, but an arch and chain system that gives a visual and audible warning that your vehicle is too high to pass under the bridge:

27B903F5-E783-4A1E-B704-E76127B866DC.png


l have questions, No.1 of which is: ”How ****ing stupid would you have to be not to get a job as a Manc bus driver?

maximus otter
 
You would think that something more high-tech would have been created to prevent this sort of accident rather than just relying on the driver noticing some dangling chains making a noise on the roof (and besides, if they're under 30 they're probably driving along with ear-buds in, listening to Spotify or similar).
Maybe some sort of sensor that detects an over-height vehicle and immediately makes a set of traffic lights turn red on this side of the bridge?
 
OK, here’s the approach to said bridge. Note that the authorities have supplied not only big warning signs, but an arch and chain system that gives a visual and audible warning that your vehicle is too high to pass under the bridge:

View attachment 65338

l have questions, No.1 of which is: ”How ****ing stupid would you have to be not to get a job as a Manc bus driver?

maximus otter
Also, it's not as if you can't see the damn bridge ahead either. I mean- it's there.
And why was he on a road that he obviously shouldn't have been on?
 
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