I have just been to a car crash by Huntly near Aberdeen, it was on STV news if anyone saw. An articulated lorry had clipped the back of a honda jazz and ended up going into the oncoming lane and hitting a focus (I think it was) head on at about 50 and 50. This was all on a country road and they ended up in the side together.

 

Everyone was a bit hurt but the driver of the focus was really quite badly injured. His left arm had open fractures (bone sticking out) and his right femur had a closed fracture. The femur was the big issue because, 1, if you break your femur you have done something very energetic it takes a lot and 2, you can bleed a lot into your thigh (like a litre or more).

 

His right thigh was half the length of his left but massively swolen with fluid inside. But there wasn't an obvious impact on his knee or lower leg, I have a theory that the right leg broke because it was pressed against the brake pedal and tried to take a million kilojoules of car crash through it. Something had to give. I have heard of this before that you find broken wrists and right legs.

 

So, having been in a massive car crash myself (passenger) and this, I reckon it's a good idea to relax and let go of the controls if you can. Probably sit up straight feet flat on the floor your back against the seat, shut your eyes and think of somewhere else.

 

Probably only possible if you get some car crash slow motion to give you the chance. Correct me if anyone thinks this is duff advice and shout up if you can back up the right leg gets smashed through the brake pedal theory.

 

Stay safe this christmas.

OUCH!!! Glad no-one was killed mate, traffic accidents happen in split seconds ,so not much thinking time if the worst does happen!! but I will keep your theory in mind if I find myself out of control :)

 

Thanks for the advise :)

Good advice Tom and you take care also as seeing all this trauma takes it's toll on the response teams.

thought i was Quincy.com after reading that..had to check my address bar.

I don't really understand how force is transferred through the pedal. The impact load is applied through the shell, the brake pedal receives the same load as the rest of the car. In theory at least. I'd be interested to learn how that works, I suspect it's possibly the opposite. The force of you suddenly stopping is the cause, ie foot on brake you slide forward before the belt catches combined with the firewall moving toward you. Very fast jarring action causes fractures doesn't it.

All accidents are best when your loose, that's how drunk or unconscious people often come out unscathed when a sober person gets servely hurt. In practice it is virtually impossible to choose to do anything, it's the subconscious that allows us to make these reactions. Think how long it takes to teach yourself not to brake when a car goes sideways, it's only once this becomes rote that it becomes reflex and subconscious. Ie useful.

Thanks Garry, I'm just annoyed I got blood on my lucky gloves :-( new shiny ones make you look like the work experience boy when you arrive on scene!

 

Bolt, I dont really know about the brake pedal leg thing but its possible depending on seat position that you could have it totally straight which isnt good.

 

The floppy thing definitely works, when I was a teenager my mum crashed a 306 with me in it. We went off the road at 60 and it was about a 10 foot drop into the field. During this drop I got slow Motion and a flashback to when I was much younger and my uncle (a motorcrosser) was telling me to go limp in a crash which I did and I was far less hurt than mum was. The car did 2 full front flips and 5 rolls side over side.

We both made full recoveries mum was alright but did break a vertebre in her neck cut head sprains and flail injuries and really cut her leg on the pedals.

 

I had whiplash on everything lol and punched my righ hand 6 inches into the dash!

Odd isn't it, I was a bit if an extreme sports junkie as a teenager, plenty of bones etc and spent my fair share in A&E for myself and others. One of my friends, we joke and say he is like a cat. I've seen him land on his feet from 15 foot up and run out of it not even fall over. I've always had a good ability to just roll and get away with it most of the time, unless something got in my way or landed on me. Another friend rarely crashed but always broke bones, one night he fell off a 10ft wall pissed as a fart I honestly thought he was going to be a mess with his history and the slap he made, turnt out he was fine just a little bruised and well even drunker than I thought lol.

I'm always quick to take my thumbs out from the steering wheel when I'm about the hit something. In my early days of driving I'd always be a plonker on country lanes. First couple knocks left me with hurting thumbs from the wheel suddenly turning. It became second nature since then to move them quick as soon as I feel something is gonna happen.

Well the other thing I have learned in this job is you can survive anything... or you can die very easilly. Ive seen a dead blokes brain with no more than an egg cup of blood on the floor, whereas tonight there were about 3 pints going up the walls!

 

There is no pattern to it at all.

Luck mate. I've seen a man fall nigh on 50feet onto his shoulder and head(helmet on) out cold the sound and the force and that enter nitty of pause before people got to him, I thought he was dead. A few minutes later he stood up and walked off.

Conversely I've seen a girlfriend trip on a broom and shatter her arm.

Nasty - and just before Christmas too:sad:

 

Interesting theory about the brake pedal though - and I fully get the whole "going limp" thing as opposed to tensing up in preparation for impact.

 

Richard