Posted on 02/08/2022 11:51:03 AM PST by BenLurkin
SAN DIEGO — A driver died Saturday after her car slammed into a boat that had fallen off a trailer as it was being towed on a state highway east of San Diego, officials said. The motorist was identified as Jennifer Kathleen Nichols, 49, of Bonita. She was the wife of interim San Diego Harbor Police Chief Kirk Nichols, who was a passenger in the car and suffered minor injuries.
The crash was reported around 6:20 p.m. on California 94 in Jamul.
The California Highway Patrol said Robert Keith Thomas, 28, was driving a 2000 Mazda B3000 truck pulling a boat on a trailer when the boat detached from the trailer as he turned onto the highway from a side road.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
A friend was following a truck full of lumber. He braked hard and the boards flew off the bed of the truck and went thru her windshield. She got hit right below her eye socket. They did a good job of putting her face back together but took many surgeries. Don’t know if the guy had insurance or any more of the details.
“the boat detached.” Very tragic when a good person dies an horrible death. Yes, ironic getting hit by a boat in the desert in Jumal. I have seen detached trailers two times on the freeway, both trailers swerved for about three minutes before detaching and crashing. Sadly, one detached trailer rolled down the hill and a class 1960 Porsche tumbled out of the trailer. The young driver was heartbroken.
1960 Porsche = rear engine, must load car backwards in/on trailer.
What a nightmare, on the Skyway, no less.
Happened same way to my father in law. They were uninjured but his Honda Ridgeline was totaled.
I've seen lots of lost boats on the highway. In my time of towing boats, the only accident I had was when a driver ran a red light and hit a custom built jetboat.
Yes, the Skyway. Two lanes each direction, no where to go.
50’ in the air. No breakdown lane.
What a stupid highway to build at the windward end of the lake. They finally tore that thing down. It was always the first one shut down in a snow storm.
In a totally different incident I almost got killed on that road on my motorcycle. I must have been in a cars blind spot. They merged over into the right lane where I was. A concrete wall on my right. I punched it a flew by him and slammed on the brakes before I hit the car in front of me.
Ordinary car insurance may not cover this, he might have needed a special boat or trailer rider.
I carry some crazy stuff on the rack that goes into my hitch receiver. Rated up to 200kg. Most recent large object was a small gun safe from Costco, maybe 250#.
I also have lots of cinch straps and know how to use them. There was plenty of extra strap capacity.
But your point is well taken. A lot of folks are clueless on securing loads.
I’ve had similar things happen to me.
This seemed like an odd circumstance until I saw the Fiat 500 part. My neighbor has one and it’s not much bigger than a go kart.
An Assault Boat?
Remember driving in the middle of the pine barrens in South Jersey. As I reached a sharp turn in the road I had to slam on the brakes as a trailer hitch with a boat attached blocked my path. Call the local police, heard later that the guy pulling the boat noticed it was missing three town later.
Ratcheting tie down straps have saved many lives that would have otherwise been lost, caused by the inability of many people to tie a decent, secure knot.
L A Times want me to pay to read an article ... well he it is L A Times ... FO
Tragic. Secure those loads, folks. Twice as many fasteners as needed is just right.
“Was behind a work van on the highway with a some ladders strapped to the top, I was just thinking “what would happen if those ladders broke loose?”, three seconds later they did and I was already slamming my brakes and cutting my wheels.”
I remember many years ago a contractor’s truck with lumber on the racks was going down the highway when an old lady slammed on her brakes right in front of him because she had missed her turn-off. The driver of the truck slammed on his brakes and swerved to avoid her but hit a car in the next lane, and the lumber came flying off and struck one of those small school buses (looked like a regular yellow school bus but a third of its size). Killed some kids. The old lady? Not a scratch, and swore it wasn’t her fault.
Worst one I had was a tire and wheel came off a travel trailer that I was following.
It came off and bounced about 10 feet straight up, then a couple smaller bounces, then ran true for a second or two, then started to wobble. finally, I went left, and it went right and bounced into the ditch.
I was on my way to business meeting with a co-worker gal in the passenger seat who kept screaming the whole time. I never took my focus off the tire so I could anticipate its next move. Like trying to average the swing in a pendulum or a plumb bob.
Had a claw hammer bounce off a truck and come flying at me on the freeway once.
Scary as being shot at.
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