Some of the latest — but, regrettably, not last — evidence that all drivers should slow down when rounding curves comes from an April 5, 2014, crash in Leland, North Carolina (NC).
According to a police report cited by NBC affiliate WCET-6, the at-fault driver was behind the wheel of a van that crossed the center line of rural River Road. After leaving his own lane and overcorrecting, the van’s driver sideswiped one car, rear-ended another and, last, rammed head-on into an ambulance. A passenger in the van was taken to a nearby hospital for the treatment of injuries.
Law enforcement officials charged the van driver with speeding. Fortunately, no one in the vehicles he hit appears to have suffered injuries requiring medical attention.
The crash, as so many involving excess speed, sharp curves and oncoming traffic, probably could have been avoided. Because it wasn’t, people got hurt, vehicles sustained damaged and at least one criminal case has to be resolved. Add in the possibility of the van passenger exercising her legal right to file civil claims against the driver’s insurance, and you get a fourth mess created by a single poor decision not to just ease up on the gas pedal.
EJL