I was on my way to Blaine's to pickup my Jeep yesterday. A white SUV had a rear tire blow out in the fast lane in front of me and began to roll. They rolled across all lanes and finally stopped on the right shoulder. It was rolling fast, probably rolled 6-10 times. Sad to read that kid died.
I stopped to help and stayed until the ambulances arrived. 4 ejected, so I assume they weren't wearing seat belts. Pretty scary to watch.
Pretty sure the tire that blew was a re-tread. I've never had re-treads on a vehicle before, definitely not going to consider them now under any circumstances. I've also never considered riding in a moving vehicle without a seat belt. I don't understand why anyone would choose to not wear one. I worked as an EMT around 20 years ago and have seen many people hurt or killed for neglecting to put a seat belt on. I don't get it.
When I was a youngster I witnessed an accident with a local family of 7 children with multiple ejections. Not wearing seatbelts was not uncommon in those times. Those visions come to me while reading this. First and foremost my thoughts and prayers go out to those involved and the family and friends that lost a loved one and friend forever.
As off-roaders we pay a lot of attention to our tires. They are such a large investment for us. This time of year with vacations and holidays the excess heat on our highways along with all the potential hazards left out there, low tire pressure, overloaded vehicles, can be a killer.
Their SUV was packed like they were going to a party somewhere. My wife noticed stuff stacked on top of it while we were driving. I didn't know until talking to her afterwards, but there were soda cans and other items mixed into the mess. Probably contributed to the blow out -- SUV packed with people and then throw groceries and stuff on top.
OMG I hate reading stories like that, glad there are people like you that have the ability and willingness to stop and render aid.
X2 on what is wrong with some people where they don't wear seatbelts? No one ever expects to get into an accident when they make that decision to not wear their seatbelt but dammit, wear the frigging thing anyway. Sometimes it's nothing more than the absolutely stupid peer pressure thing... a bunch of kids pile into a car and the leader of the pack doesn't buckle his and the rest stupidly follow his lead.
One of the best known Jeepers on the Jeep discussion boards many years ago was a gentleman known as TJRON. He was well known and everyone liked him... great guy, fun to have exchanges with. When the subject of seatbelts came up, he always said he wore his seatbelt on the highway but wouldn't wear one offroad, claiming he wanted to be able to jump out if the rig started to roll. That was his undoing... he and a friend of mine took off on a two week wheeling trip and he was killed during that trip in an offroad rollover. He tried to jump out but didn't make it and the jeep rolled over his head. He died in my friend's arms. RIP Ron.
That is a crazy story. Poor guy. I'm sure if he had walked away from that accident un-harmed he would have been telling everyone how not wearing a seat belt saved his life. Doesn't usually work out that way.
When I was an EMT, they taught us how you're much safer held in place by a seat belt. Without it, you are a projectile waiting for physics to decide your fate. I had an instructor put some kind for fruit (cherry?) inside a jar. First one was taped to the side and shaken up. Perfect shape and edible. Second one was a cherry loose which ended up with cherry juice and a mess.
What happened Friday will make me move seats with 5 point restraints higher up on the list.
A helmet would be a good idea too though I'm sure that would be ridiculed on the trail.
That's some damn sobering stories right there. Thanks for sharing guys. I actually buckle up on the road all the time, but have neglected to do so on the trail on occasion(door is off, going slow, etc). After Jerry's story, that changes today.
As an aside, I disagree somewhat on the retread angle... ANY tire that is neglected can fail. That includes sidewall dry rot, uneven tire wear, improper highway inflation, etc. alternately, a quality "retread" can be a great tire (like Treadwright). Those "alligators" you see all over the highway are rarely from a retread. When I was in the motor home business, failed Michelins were stacked sky high outside the service bay, the soft sidewalls gave a plush ride but were much more prone to blowouts after the sun baked them for a year or two on rigs that could weigh 20,000 lbs or more.
OMG I hate reading stories like that, glad there are people like you that have the ability and willingness to stop and render aid.
X2 on what is wrong with some people where they don't wear seatbelts? No one ever expects to get into an accident when they make that decision to not wear their seatbelt but dammit, wear the frigging thing anyway. Sometimes it's nothing more than the absolutely stupid peer pressure thing... a bunch of kids pile into a car and the leader of the pack doesn't buckle his and the rest stupidly follow his lead.
One of the best known Jeepers on the Jeep discussion boards many years ago was a gentleman known as TJRON. He was well known and everyone liked him... great guy, fun to have exchanges with. When the subject of seatbelts came up, he always said he wore his seatbelt on the highway but wouldn't wear one offroad, claiming he wanted to be able to jump out if the rig started to roll. That was his undoing... he and a friend of mine took off on a two week wheeling trip and he was killed during that trip in an offroad rollover. He tried to jump out but didn't make it and the jeep rolled over his head. He died in my friend's arms. RIP Ron.
That's some damn sobering stories right there. Thanks for sharing guys. I actually buckle up on the road all the time, but have neglected to do so on the trail on occasion(door is off, going slow, etc). After Jerry's story, that changes today.
As an aside, I disagree somewhat on the retread angle... ANY tire that is neglected can fail. That includes sidewall dry rot, uneven tire wear, improper highway inflation, etc. alternately, a quality "retread" can be a great tire (like Treadwright). Those "alligators" you see all over the highway are rarely from a retread. When I was in the motor home business, failed Michelins were stacked sky high outside the service bay, the soft sidewalls gave a plush ride but were much more prone to blowouts after the sun baked them for a year or two on rigs that could weigh 20,000 lbs or more.
What a terrible tragedy. And an even bigger tragedy if some of the passengers weren't wearing seat belts. From the picture in the article, the suv appears to be a late model 7 passenger Ford Explorer. There should have been enough seat belts.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Ask a question
Ask a question
Jeep Wrangler Forum
9M posts
468K members
Since 2005
A forum community dedicated to Jeep Wrangler owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about reviews, performance, trail riding, gear, suspension, tires, classifieds, troubleshooting, maintenance, for all JL, JT, JK, TJ, YJ, and CJ models!