A few minutes ago Chuck called me from the intersection of 1431 and the entrance to our neighborhood. There was an 18-wheeler headed West on 1431 and a woman in a mini-van, making a right turn onto 1431, had the hood of her van torn off when the two vehicles collided. Chuck said it looked like the woman was OK, the van had airbags, and it didn't look like there were any kids involved.
A few minutes ago Chuck called me from the intersection of 1431 and the entrance to our neighborhood. There was an 18-wheeler headed West on 1431 and a woman in a mini-van, making a right turn onto 1431, had the hood of her van torn off when the two vehicles collided. Chuck said it looked like the woman was OK, the van had airbags, and it didn't look like there were any kids involved.
This kind of thing really ticks me off. I'm glad the woman is OK, and shame on that 18-wheeler for running a red light but, for heaven's sake, DO YOU REALLY PULL OUT ONTO 1431 WITHOUT MAKING SURE ALL 18-WHEELERS, DUMP TRUCKS, OR CEMENT TRUCKS COMING YOUR WAY HAVE STOPPED????? 1431 is, and seems to have been for as long as I've been in Austin, a thoroughfare for REALLY BIG, FAST MOVING TRUCKS. What if her kids had been in that van???
This is one of the reasons we don't let our kids ride with anyone else. All accidents happen because someone was being STUPID. And no, the accident will not be her fault; the truck ran a red light. Could she have avoided it? Absolutely!
I've experienced what the loss of parents and children in STUPID accidents does to a family. There's grief, guilt, blame and bitterness sometimes spoken, sometimes just living quietly in the dark, growing like a cancer. Forgiveness comes slowly, if at all, and never without the help of God.
I can't tell you how many times I've seen those trucks blow through that intersection even when I've had the right of way. You can't just GO because you have a GREEN light. Those trucks are usually moving much faster than they should be on that road, but, in the end, they're BIG and you're SMALL, they're going too fast to stop and you're SMALL.
THINK. As my son would say, Just Pleeeaaase???