While most folks know not to drive into water during a rainstorm, this is still worth repeating. Here’s what can happen (luckily the driver later escaped unharmed). Warning - LOTS of profanity in the audio, so MUTE your sound:
We’ve been getting deluged almost every day for the past few weeks here in OK and warning people about the dangers of high water is an exercise in futility. The local news stations and officials have been hammering the point home repeatedly on a daily basis and it does no good.
Local new reported that last Sat. evening alone in OK City rescue crews were called out 55 times to drag people out after they drove in. That’s just one city and the ones that actually called for help.
One firefighter has already lost his life trying to save someone and several more were very, very close to buying the farm.
One of the local news stations had a helicopter in the air and showed a live feed of some guy driving what looked like a Mitsubishi Galant across a 300 foot wide swath of running water that a blind man could see was deep and fast moving.
He made it about 75 feet or so before stalling out; following by getting out and what looked like waving his arms and cursing the car for stalling out on him.
What would be funny if it wasn’t a life and death matter is watching someone plow ahead into running water while a stalled pickup a few hundred feet in front of them has water up to the door handles. Lemming Syndrome I guess…
“… warning people about the dangers of high water is an exercise in futility”
Yeah, I know, it’s sad but true. There have been hundreds of high water rescues here, in the hill country, and around Houston. Many resulted from folks driving into water. I just hope that maybe this’ll reach one person…
Recently I saw live footage of one of those idiot storm chasers ( people who need a life ) driving through water deep enough it was splashing over the hood of a SUV . There are just to many who think it won’t happen to me.
I’m amazed the person escaped unharmed.
I Can’t Watch The Video (Fred Flintsone PC Coupled To A Samuel Morse Dial-Up Modem), But You Wonder Why Car Any Insurance Is So Expensive For Us To Buy?
“Hold my beer! Watch this!”
CSA
Will Rogers — ‘Common sense ain’t common.’
Several years ago my son had stopped his Jeep Wrangler in front of a flooded road, several kids in a Cavalier (or similar) car drove around him - giving him the business as to why he did not cross the wet road. They promptly ended up in water up to their doors, stalled out and runied their car.
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Never cross a flooded road.
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If a Jeep is not crossing the road maybe that is telling you something !!
I Worked A Small Airport Once And One Of The Owners Thought It Would
Be Great Fun Chasing After A Fox With His Old Style Rear-Swing-Axle Volkswagen Bug.
Around the airport they went… until the VW rolled over.
The insurance claim form read, “Cause of accident: swerved to avoid hitting animal.”
Sometimes people just don’t know their limitations.
CSA
Well I’ll just add that in addition to not driving over flooded roads, how about not bringing the family down to watch the raging water while standing on the bank?
I also think, remembering when I was young, invincible and unstoppable, many people have lead such protected padded lives they do not realize something can be dangerous.
Interesting vdo. I guess everyone should keep a coil of rope in their trunk for an aid to helping out in this kind of situation. I’d recommend folks watch that Mythbuster’s segment on what do if your car accidentally goes into the water too.
I have rope in the trunk, and bungees, and trenching tool, first aid kit, etc. More for tying loads down though instead of reeling in flooded cars. Wild ride he had.
Sadly, people have a sense of security when in their vehicles that sometimes transcends common sense. And it sometimes costs them their lives.
About 10 years ago on a 2 lane state highway near where I live I came over a rise one day after some heavy rain. The water was rushing over the roadway and appeared to be less than a foot deep and maybe a 100 feet wide.
Two highway dept. trucks were there and my mind was already made up about turning around and going back.
One of the highway workers advised me that it would be best to turn around. They had already advised someone in a '97 Thunderbird not to proceed but they chose to plow ahead anyway.
The T-Bird was washed into the ditch by that foot of water and the driver was given a ride elsewhere by the person behind them who chose to turn around after watching the Ford get shoved into the drainage ditch.
The Good Samaritan was a farmer in a 4WD pickup who apparently had no problem with a soaking wet and muddy passenger and apparently had a lot more common sense than the T-Bird driver.
Every rental car in Holland has a hammer to break the window in case you end up in the water. Many roads there run parallel to the canals.
A current incident here in OK involved a couple of guys who were stranded in high water and took exception to being rescued by a pair of OK state troopers. One allegedly pulled a gun and was shot to death by a trooper. The other guy was arrested on a couple of charges involving under the influence, etc.
Very few details are known at this point.
When visiting Ireland a few years ago we ate at a restaurant on Galway Bay. Across the road, on the bay was a huge flat concrete wharf probably big enough to park 50 cars on and with nothing to stop you from driving onto or off of it. No fencing or guard rails at all.
The Irish solution to safety was a sign with a pictogram, inside a red circle with a diagonal line through it of a car driving off it into the water.
It’s one thing to get caught in a flash flood on a stretch of road that normally never floods but I marvel at how many folks wilfully drive into high water and are surprised when their car floods out and/or is swept away.
+1, @Marnet - we just had another high water rescue yesterday, bright sunny day, everybody knows about the flooding that’s still going on, somebody just decided to drive into deep water. Crazy.
I would never drive into water, but I do understand that many people just don’t see the danger. They know there is a road right there they’ve driven a million times before and the water couldn’t be that deep and the kids don’t have a key so won’t be able to get into the house and the ice cream is melting and this is why they bought a Subaru and cars get wet all the time and, and, and… Life can be too complicated for some people. They just want to get home and not have to think so darn much.