Minor wrecks with bad injuries?

[01rangerxl]

Originally Posted By: azjake
Here's the problem. When you crash your internal organs take the brunt of the sudden stop and that includes your brain. That's why someone with no cuts, bruises or other visible injuries can die from internal or brain injuries.
Even a low speed crash can do a lot of internal damage.

I understand that, I'm just kind of surprised it could happen so easily with modern vehicles.

None of the actual wrecks I have been in were less than 35 MPH. The most recent rear ending was when I was in a 2006 Titan at a red light. A woman in an Infinity FX45 slammed into the back of it, hard. She never even hit the brakes. There were no injuries at all, but the FX45 was definitely totaled. The trailer hitch on the truck took most of the hit, so it was still drivable, but had body damage too. I have never been in a wreck in a small car though, so maybe that's different.

 

[Cristobal]

Having done accident claims investigations for most of my working life, I have seen a lot. I have seen incredible accidents where people lived, including one auto vs. pedestrian case I witnessed myself. I saw this woman hit by a car at high speed. She was thrown at least thirty feet into the air, fell to the pavement, and survived.

On the other hand, I recall a case at Valley Blvd. & Santa Anita in El Monte. A man and woman were on a motorcycle; the male driver did not watch where he was going, and they hit a phone pole at about 12 miles per hour. Both were killed instantly. A cop saw the accident happen. The bike's engine was still running and the rear wheel was turning as it lay on its side on the ground.

A lot of minor auto accidents produce serious injuries. I recall one low-speed, two-car accident at a four-way stop that turned an 18 year old man into a paraplegic. He was wearing a seat belt too. Both cars had less than $1000.00 in damage. Not many low speed accidents do this on a statistical basis, but that is of little comfort if your number comes up.

There is a ton of fraud out there, legitimate accidents with severe injuries, and everything in between.

 

[TC]

Originally Posted By: motor_oil_madman
why minor wrecks have major injuries or why you end up with 50 police cars and tons of emt guys? The answer to your second question is because they are bored so they all respond to whatever happens. I guess i'd rather have more help than none at all.


Rather than remain at the station and get paid to clean the shower stalls, each response represents additional resources should a small incident quickly and unexpectedly become a big incident, and each call, whatever it involves, becomes an informal training exercise simply by the responders being present.

 

[TC]

Originally Posted By: Spazdog
OHMUHGERSH!!!! The plastic clips that hold the plastic bumper cover on have popped out from a minor collision. Call the fire dept!!! We have to have 3 of the 4 lanes on the freeway completely shut down!!!!

State law dictates that you must clear the roadway in a minor collision when your vehicle is still able to move. Firefighters completely disregard this state law regularly. They park their trucks at an angle across as many lanes as possible and block the freeway creating a hazard to all the other cars behind them and the traffic approaching them at freeway speed.

I have a lot of respect for firefighters. My oldest sister is one. But that respect ends when they block the freeway for a very minor collision. I've driven cars wrecked worse than some of the cars I've seen.

"...you don't understand the extent of the injuries that can occur from a collision like that."
Yeah, maybe you shouldn't be driving if a minor bump like that severly injures you. A big pothole or frostheave will paralyze you.


They’ll block anywhere from zero lanes to all of them, depending on how many responders will be milling about the highway while dealing with the scope of the incident. If they’re not blocking an additional lane past where they’re working as a safety buffer, they’re doing it wrong. People driving by stop looking at what’s in front of them and focus on the carnage, so with that stupidity, a buffer is needed. It’s unlikely that they’ll “create a hazard to approaching traffic” since traffic will almost be slowed to a crawl near the accident scene anyway. Up the road at the end of the blocked traffic, people will need to slow abruptly once they see the blockage. Not much can be done to address that other than the overhead message signs some highways have.

 

[TC]

At least some seemingly "minor" accidents can nonetheless a cause a legitimate injury (or at least suspected injury) to the neck or spine. No, not all of these are faked. Until they get a person to an X-ray machine to confirm yes or no, they can't be certain. Before then, spine and neck immobilization is key. And that = fire department, EMTs, backboards and lane(s) blocked as required.

 

[Spazdog]

Contrary to state law.

Move the vehicles to a safe location.

I never see anybody immobilized on a backboard for these minor collisions. It's countless accident participants and first responders, like you said, milling about.