I will never forget a picture I saw several years ago of a car accident. One driver in that accident had a pen attached to his neck, as if it were a flying dart attached to a dart board. The driver survived the accident, but had to go through an intense surgical procedure to remove the so-called “pencil” of his neck.
A weightless tissue box, music CD, portable iPod, or even a small pen may not look like deadly objects. However, they sure can be during the impact time of a speeding car accident. When a collision occurs, velocity worsens its severity by increasing the energy of the impact. The higher the speed of the vehicle, the more severe the impact will be during the secondary collision of crashes. Secondary collision is when drivers and passengers collide with objects inside the vehicle. That object can definitely be a loose item in the vehicle that has been transformed into a dangerous flying missile during the accident.
When a vehicle and all of its contents, including passengers and objects, are traveling at high speed, they have inertia which means they will want to keep going with that direction and speed. (Newton’s first law of motion). In the event of a sudden deceleration of a rigid frame vehicle due to an impact, contents not secured within the vehicle will continue to advance at their previous speed due to inertia. They will impact the interior of the vehicle, with a force equivalent to many times its normal weight due to gravity. During this terrifying situation in a high speed car accident, a “tissue box” It can transform into a heavy brick and has been cited as the cause of death in at least one accident. And yes, a “small pen” can transform into a flying arrow or dart.
Thousands of people have been seriously injured and killed in motor vehicle crashes primarily due to a secondary collision with an unsecured object in the vehicle. So this is where prevention can be your lifeline to prevent these tragic situations from happening. Some tips to consider:
- The first prevention tip is obvious, but should never be underestimated, and it is “don’t speed up”; To reiterate, the higher the speed, the heavier the object in a car accident.
- The second prevention tip is to ask yourself if there needs to be an object inside your vehicle, for example “Is it really necessary to have 60 music CDs in my vehicle?” The more objects there are inside the vehicle, the greater the possibility that they can hit victims like flying missiles in an accident; In other words, “less is better”.
- The third prevention tip is to secure the objects that are necessary to travel with you in a motor vehicle and store them in the glove compartment of the vehicle or inside the trunk. It is also invaluable advice when it comes to car theft prevention.
We can all do our part to avoid being targeted by flying missiles in motor vehicle crashes. Be aware of the dangers both inside and outside of your vehicle. Reduce the items you carry in your vehicle and store them in your glove compartment or trunk.