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Rear-end Collison causes Natural Gas Pipeline Explosion Texas

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  • 02-01-2007, 01:27 AM
    jochuey
    Rear-end Collison causes Natural Gas Pipeline Explosion Texas
    TEXAS. My friend hit a vehicle from behind. They both pulled over to look at the damages. My friend noticed she was acting strange. He gave her his information and mentioned that buffing the bumber should take care of it and restore it back to the way it was. After getting in his car and driving off, he noticed her in the rear view mirror driving aggressively and getting too close to his bumper. He stopped again to see what she wanted. He said she was so hostile that he felt uneasy and began to wonder about her mental status; so he left. He was making a U-turn and bam! she had hit his car with such force that it pushed it thru 2 lanes of traffic and a fence, flipping his car over and landing in a gas pipeline field. He was knocked unconscience and when he came to, he saw that the car had landed on its side; therefore, trapping him in the vehicle. He could hear the hissing of gas. Apparently, his car had hit a release valve and ruptured an 18-inch gas feed line releasing 600lbs. per sq. inch of pressure. Miraclously, he was able to climb out of his sunroof just in time before the explosion. Unable to speak he was taken to the hospital for treatment of the shock and his head injuries. The woman's story to the police was he unexpectedly breaked causing the rear-end collision. In addition, she stated to the police that when they exchanged information she demanded the police be there and he disagreed and left. Because of her side of the story and the police being in such a hurry to point the finger and blame someone, arrested my friend at the hospital. My friend had expired insurance. He was in jail for 19 days and the charges were dropped against him. The District Attorney tried several times to talk to the woman involved about the accident and her statements, but she refused to cooperate with them and the police. The accident report states her version of the story and her contact information. My friend thought she has car insurance, but the report does not list that information. Her car was totaled. He feels her actions were negligence and criminal. Not to mention her false statements to the police. Any suggestions?
  • 02-01-2007, 06:20 AM
    Mr. Knowitall
    Re: Rear-end Collison causes Natural Gas Pipeline Explosion Texas
    Quote:

    Quoting jochuey
    View Post
    After getting in his car and driving off, he noticed her in the rear view mirror driving aggressively and getting too close to his bumper. He stopped again to see what she wanted. He said she was so hostile that he felt uneasy and began to wonder about her mental status; so he left.

    This was, no offense, incredibly stupid. Why would he want to escalate a possible road rage incident? If this person was so aggressive and scary, why would he want to pull her over for yet another face-to-face encounter?
    Quote:

    Quoting jochuey
    Miraclously, he was able to climb out of his sunroof just in time before the explosion.

    Miraculously is about right. This is why you get away from drivers who seem crazy or are displaying "road rage" rather than confronting them, trying to pull them over, or otherwise escalating the confrontation.
    Quote:

    Quoting jochuey
    The woman's story to the police was he unexpectedly breaked causing the rear-end collision.

    Given the facts you describe, it shouldn't have be particularly difficult for the police to determine from the skid marks on the road and the damage to the vehicles how fast the vehicles (particularly hers) were going at the time of the collision, where on the road the collision occurred, and the direction the cars were facing relative to each other at the time of collision. For her story to be accurate, there would normally be skid marks at least from her car, and the collision would have occurred with both cars facing forward in the traffic lane.

    Assuming the detention was not solely over your friend's driving without insurance, as this this was initially treated as a criminal charge, it is safe to assume that a police accident investigator did some sort of reconstruction of how the accident occurred. Given that the charges were ultimately dropped, her story may have been determined to be false or incomplete, or it may have been determined that she was uncooperative. Either way your friend would want to try to get a complete police report, if he doesn't have one already.
    Quote:

    Quoting jochuey
    In addition, she stated to the police that when they exchanged information she demanded the police be there and he disagreed and left.

    This would not be surprising, given that he knew he was breaking the law by driving without insurance. Lots of uninsured drivers try that, along with trying to convice the other driver that the damage is "no big deal" (e.g., "you can buff that out.")
    Quote:

    Quoting jochuey
    Any suggestions?

    If he has evidence to support his version of events and his injuries warrant it, he can talk to a lawyer about a possible personal injury lawsuit.
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