Witnessed a gruesome accident today

Today I was driving on the right hand lane of a 4 lane city highway when I came up to a stoplight that was just turning yellow. I came to a slow stop but the motorcycle in the left lane decided to try to beat the yellow light and I heard the engine rev up and the motorcycle zipped past me. At the same time a Dodge Charger on the opposite side of traffic also tried to beat a yellow light and it made a hasty left turn. The Dodge Charger slammed into the motorcycle and both motorcycle passengers, a man and a woman, flew through the air as glass, metal, and plastic sprayed into the air. Neither motorcycle passengers had a helmet on. It was pretty clear the female passenger had almost instantly died as she laid motionless on the road. The male motorcycle driver was on the ground for a full minute before he started to slowly move his head around. It appeared that his legs were badly mangled. The three passengers of the Charger appeared to be completely unharmed when they exited their vehicle.

I felt terrible for the man who was driving the motorcycle. He's likely handicapped for life and the woman, likely his wife, is dead because two motorists simply wanted to beat a yellow light. I've been in a funk all day thinking about how life can, in an instant, take a turn for the worst. Maybe if I had decided to try and beat that yellow light I would have crashed into the Charger as well.

I really wish I hadn't been there to witness that accident.

That sounds really bad. I sold my motorcycle 3 months ago after having ~100 close calls, i always wore proper gear though (rode a cbr1000rr). Do you think it would have mattered if the passenger was wearing a helmet?

Sad to hear. I rode motorcycles for years but gave it up some years ago, they are just too dangerous to ride.

I am sorry to hear this, Imon. It is humbling to see something like this take place and those images can stick with you for a long time.

On the positive side it will reaffirm the need to slow down at a yellow light and be extra cautious when approaching an intersection. Not because of anything you might do wrong, but because of something that some idiot might try to pull off.

This happened to me many years ago. I was sitting at a red light. The light turned green and I slowly proceeded into the intersection. At that moment a biker came out of nowhere, crashed the red light on his side, slammed into my car and pushed my car into the car to the right of me.

The guy was traveling with a female companion and neither one was wearing a helmet. Both of them flew into the air. The guy landed on a grassy area and only had a couple of broken legs. His female companion landed on her skull on the concrete and died instantly.

Ever since then I've always approach intersections with extra caution.

Yeah...I hit a guy on a Kawasaki ninja about 15-16 years ago. No rush...saw a headlight about 100 yards out on a service road...pulled out to turn...SMACK...looked behind me, and saw a guy laying on the road. I saw cars...100 yards out...not a motorcycle. He was doing about 70. He had all his gear on...so he lived, although I saw him maybe 7 years ago, and he still had a limp from where his ankle shattered. His kawasaki was a tangled mess (and so was he to tell the truth), and he ended up with close to $150,000 in medical bills (this was in the late 90's). My car was an 82 LTD...which "catapulted" him over the car, missing it completely. I suffered nothing...not a scratch. My car got a little scratch on the bumper. Not tryin' to sound humourous, but I went to see the guy a few days later in the hospital...it was THE GUY that SOLD me the car about 4 weeks earlier...going on about the LTD being a tank, and how safe they are during wrecks. But, yeah, it shook me up pretty bad...just glad he made it.

We were coming back home one day on the interstate, and came on heavy traffic...wreck for sure, I thought to myself...sure enough, we come upon a burnt honda along I-95, and a gurney with a body bag not 10' from the road...read the story a few days later...he was alive when his car impacted the tree, but no one had a fire extinguisher or the means to get him out...that's why I especially traveled prepared. Flashlight, sharp knife, serious first aid kit, etc. Wish I coulda been there, and might have been able to save the guy.

Had both parties been in cars, there would have been some messed up bodywork, some broken glass, maybe some arguing, a lot of paperwork. But because one of the parties was on a motorcycle, now there is death, debilitation, a funeral, possibly children who have lost a parent, definitely parents who have lost a child, a ruined financial future, etc.

And that's why motorcycles are a bad idea.

This is all very tragic and humbling. I used to bicycle around NYC all the time in the middle '90s when traffic really wasn't that bad, but still had a few very close calls with cab doors. I've never rode on a motorcycle or owned one, and I never will - I just know the end result is getting hurt in some way or another or dead.

My daughter is two years old this month and I am compelled to print out this thread and show it to her when she is a teen.

Riding motorcycles isn't all that dangerous in itself, it's the other cars on the road that don't see you, that's where the danger lies. I imagine deaths from simple motorcycle crashes isn't that high, it's where motorcycles collide with automobiles, that's how people are getting killed all the time.

ebow86 said:

Riding motorcycles isn't all that dangerous in itself, it's the other cars on the road that don't see you, that's where the danger lies. I imagine deaths from simple motorcycle crashes isn't that high, it's where motorcycles collide with automobiles, that's how people are getting killed all the time.

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Yep...like I said in my story...I wasn't being careless, or rushing, or inattenative...I didn't see the guy...period. To back that claim, after nearly killing the guy, the cop gave me a warning...said he wouldn't give me a ticket since he understood the situation all to well...doesn't matter how good the motorcycle driver is, when other vehicles on the road can't see you...

Had a fellow AMMO Troop with me in Italy...same story...an Italian couple pulled out in front of him...didn't see him. His cycle went through their car killing both of them, and himself...sadly he left behind a 3-day old baby girl. First funeral I went to since joining the service...and about 40-50% of them since then have all been motorcycles.

I thought about getting a motorcycle once. But then I realized: it didn't matter how smart of a rider I was, I'd be meat under the wheels of the worst texting, stop-sign-rolling, failing-to-signal, light-running, inattentive SUV driver on the road. Of course, I still am, but in a car with airbags I at least stand a chance.

The car driver in Imon's story should have known better. So should have the motorcycle rider, with his life and his passenger's life in his hands. Sad story.

The accident I witnessed does not include a motorcycle. I was a pedestrian on a busy stretch of walkway in the heart of a shopping district. There were like easily 30 of us stopping at a crossing waiting for the green man to come on. Out of the blue, we heard the sharp screeching of brakes and in front of us, a cab appeared on our right and all sights followed it to our left where the cab hit a jaywalker straight on. It threw the fellow like a ragged doll over the cab and upon hitting the boot, he was propelled 10 yards to smash against a tree on the side where he dropped in a heap at the base. There were a few seconds of shocked silence before all pedestrians reacted, some called for ambulance, some stood and stared, some ladies gasped, some quickly ran over to attend to the man and some moved on with the crossing in a daze. Not sure if the fellow survived, there was a bit of arm movement before I left the scene. You can be sure that the number of times I jaywalked has reduced dramatically after that day.

Ah yes when I was a kid my mom who was a nurse at a local hospital took me to her job. Her job was a great place to work in and everybody got along. One time I went there to visit a relative who was sick and on the way my mom showed me a patient who had a motorcycle accident. I was outside took a quick look but I clearly remembered seeing a person with his forehead sunk in.
My mom later told me that it was a man who had a motorcycle accident.
When I was in the Navy a buddy of mine told me about a cousin of his who flew off the Golden Gate bridge years ago and didn't make it.

There are so many people out there who are careless its scary. One I was going to drive through an intersection were a freeway exits. I got nervous around this area cause its populated with a lot of young men who think that they are in the Fast and the Furious movies. In this area just about every single car old or new has got a gigantic muffler that makes a lot of noise. As I was approaching the green light I took a quick peek at the off ramp that discharged into the intersection and slowed to a stop. An older car did not obey the red light and blasted full speed to make a left. Had I not slowed down my car would have been hit on the side from a car doing at around 50 mph.
In this same area about two streets away lives a buddy of mine. One night around 1AM we were in his garage with his brother playing some poker. We heard a car with a gigantic muffler driving near the nearest intersection that has four stop signs. We heard the gigantic muffler doing its thing then a loud bang crash noise. We stepped outside hoping that he had not hit our cars and we saw that he had run past the stop sign directly into a neighbors newly built brick fence. It was late at night with no traffic. He was trying to get away but his car was up on the wall. I grabbed my Surefire C2 with a Malkoff M60 and lit him up. He stopped trying to get away. We went back inside once we saw that he was calling his mommy. He was pissed and he said "mom I crashed my car!"

First off, this is an awful thing to bear witness to. I've come across some bad accidents, but never anything where it was obvious someone was killed. Some of the stories people posted here are just horrible things to have witnessed. I'm glad (so far) to have never witnessed anything like that.

Second, the accident happened because neither party gave themselves an out. That's the key-anticipate the worst that could happen, and if it does have a plan. In this case, if the motorcycle is trying to beat the yellow (bad idea by the way at busy intersections), at least see if there's a free lane to go to should someone turn in front. If not, stop. Your life is worth more than perhaps 30 seconds. And the guy making the left turn shouldn't have made it, period. Maybe he assumed if he started turning just as the light flipped from yellow to red, the traffic in the opposite direction would be stopped. Assuming traffic will stop at red is a fatal assumption. A red light isn't an invisible force field. I've been cycling in NYC for 33 years. Never had a collision with either a car or a pedestrian. I always look for cross traffic even when I have the green. Not looking at greens (or yellows) is how cyclists (and some motorcyclists) get killed. They might look for cross traffic when they're passing red lights (a very common thing cyclists here do, including myself, and perfectly safe if you check for cross traffic first). However, they don't even think of looking when they have green. I do, and it's saved me probably two dozen times over the years, if not more. That's actually the advantage of living in a place where traffic laws generally aren't enforced, and jaywalking is rampant. You learn to look out 100% of the time, rather than being lulled into a false sense of security from the "green wave", simply because you can't count on cars to stop for red lights here. One night going for a walk, I saw three of them run lights in the space of 5 minutes, including one at ~55 mph in a 30 mph zone.

Yeah, motorcycles are dangerous. I thought of one once, but the thought quickly passed. No protection, just like a bicycle, but with the speeds of a car. Worst of both worlds. A helmet is a good idea, but it mainly offers protection when the motorcycle is involved in an accident by itself. Against a 2 or 3 ton vehicle, no chance. The motorcyclist will be dead or maimed for life, the motorist probably won't even spill their coffee. No thanks, I'll stick to my bike. At least most bicycle accidents (other than collisions with motor vehicles) are surviveable with minor injuries. If you must ride a motorcycle, the old adage ride as if you're invisible applies, same as it does on a bicycle. If you depend upon motorists to see you for your safety, sooner or later you're dead.

While we're on the subject of traffic signals, they're a bad idea, period. More accidents occur at signaled intersections than anywhere else. The reason is simple. Motorists with the green assume the right-of-way, get lulled into a false sense of security. Sooner or later, since humans make mistakes, someone runs a red light, either purposely, or simply because they didn't notice it. Now you have two vehicles colliding at full speed. Roundabouts are a much better, safer way to deal with intersections. You avoid the long delays associated with red lights. And the geometry forces all vehicles to slow to a safe speed at every intersection, making collisions far less deadly should they occur. They help pedestrians even more. A pedestrian struck by a car going 20 mph in a roundabout has a 90% chance of surviving. One hit by a car running a red light at, say 40 mph, has a 90% chance of dying.

I read this last night, and I read this again this morning, and I thought about what to say that reflects how I feel. And as a cyclist, here it is:

"Wear your helmet!"

If I am riding down the block at five miles an hour, I wear my helmet. Even at slow speeds, your head vs. the pavement is not a battle I want to see waged. The thought of doing highway speeds without a helmet on boggles my mind. The state of Connecticut has a partial helmet law, where if you are 18 or older you are not required to wear a helmet. On a bike ride a number of years ago, I went out to Connecticut and made a big loop back to southern NY. Unlike on an interstate where there are giant signs proclaiming your entry or exit from a state or the transition from one to another, there are many points where you can quietly move from NY to CT on rural or suburban roads. I was near one of these points, sitting at a traffic light waiting for it to change, when I saw riders in CT pulling out their helmets to put them on before crossing over into NY. I didn't fully understand what I was seeing until I got home and looked up the relevant law in Connecticut. Link

What happened in the OP was horrible all on counts, for the victims, their families, and for Imon to witness. The thing that strikes me is the decision not to wear a helmet, and the tragedy such a decision can lead to. Whenever I am riding my bike, walking, or driving, and I see a youth struggling up a hill without a helmet on, I really, really want to lean out the window (car), stop walking (ped), or pull off to the side (bike) and offer them a stern lecture.

As a side note, helmets provide great sun protection, which prevents both that "baked scalp" look and its accompanying pains.

Here in Pa. where stupidity reigns supreme on the roads, there are no helmet laws and many motorcyclists go without. They're crazy. I used to be on a first aid squad so I heard all the stories.

Rich

Andy13186 said:

That sounds really bad. I sold my motorcycle 3 months ago after having ~100 close calls, i always wore proper gear though (rode a cbr1000rr). Do you think it would have mattered if the passenger was wearing a helmet?

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I do think a helmet would have made a difference - for the woman at least.
She was thrown much further from the site of collision than the man - about 25 feet away. I was a bit shocked by how far she flew but they were going about 50 mph.

+

Let's not get caught up in blaming the bike.

Here in Wisconsin on a weekend, tons of people are touring on their Harleys,
I'd say 70% don't wear helmets, but they are generally well behaved.

Many people would say they're nuts,
but that's their right & it likely won't change here.

Just read your post and it took me back to an incident a few years ago. A motorcyclist was coming up a hill just outside my girlfriends old flat, we were walking up the hill and had our backs to the bike. There was a huge sound as he accelerated, lost the back end and slammed into a wall. As I looked around there was a cloud of dust and bike parts coming towards us. We were uninjured, but the rider lost his life. Put me off motorcycles and now I do not like to even drive down that road.

I used to ride on the tarmac. Bit of a nutter too. Knee down, sparks flying kinda stuff. I wore all the gear and it saved my life the last time I had an off. Wadded the bike in a spectacular way, I bounced around some in the trees, ended up down a 40' bank in a creek. Hurt my thumb, seriously, that's it. Got most of the bike home and sat and looked at it for awhile, recalling all the close calls and sphincter puckering times the thing provided me with. Made the choice that riding in a cage might be boring as hell, but boring is typically not life threatening, so it's doors and airbags now. Besides I have a 600cc, 110hp engine to make a shifter cart with now *evil grin* and I still have motocross.

I've wanted to get a bike *so bad* over the years. Simply because I like riding and I can save a fortune on gas when I commute to my jobs.

The problem is I've seen so many accidents over the years and seen seen so many riders lose their lives (even when they are not at fault) I'm flat out dead-set against getting one. Friend of mine hit a deer on his crotch-rocket a few yeasr back doing about 15 over, did a couple summersaults before landing in a ditch, and only broke his ankle. Bike was trashed - deer walked away.

While I agree it's up to State laws, any trauma surgeon will tell you not riding with a helmet is job security. The guys riding in packs on the weekends with their Harley's are likely the least likely to get into accidents simply because of the way they ride, but you can't discriminate this way.