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⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️
Village Idiot
He wasn't really that drunk, but definitely drunk enough to be predominately thinking with the other head. See you on the other side, bro.
Wait, we want to save people would would otherwise make such a poor judgement as to release themselves onto the road to become a murderous danger to innocent people? I get it that autonomous driving has the benefit of saving lives, and that's great. But keep in mind that these same poor decisions makers will just find other places to make equally poor decisions. I think it's worth it, but not for the reasons of saving the stupid alone.
deonb
Active Member
Totally agree. Just look at this recent NTSB report that just came out - some people's lack of judgement is astounding:
http://registry.faa.gov/N122WK
NTSB Identification: ERA15FA359
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, September 16, 2015 in Alma, GA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 01/31/2017
Aircraft: BOATRIGHT WAYLON RV10, registration: N122WK
Injuries: 5 Fatal.
NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The non-certificated pilot/owner departed in his four-seat, amateur-built airplane in dark night conditions with four passengers on board. Radar data and a witness account indicated that the airplane was performing climbs, descents, and “S” turns at low altitude before the accident; the radar data indicated that climb and descent rates reached over 2,500 ft per minute. The witness described the airplane flying “just above the trees” and up and down in an “M” pattern with smooth increases and decreases in engine power until it disappeared from view, and the engine sounds ceased. Examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or anomalies, and the accident site was consistent with impact at full engine power and a high rate of descent.
The pilot had a history of disregard for established rules and regulations. He operated the accident airplane for years without a pilot certificate. He was arrested on three separate occasions, two of those within the 4 months before the accident, for operating vehicles under the influence of alcohol. His contempt for rules and regulations, as illustrated in his operation of surface vehicles and the accident airplane, is consistent with an attitude of “anti-authority,” which the Federal Aviation Administration considers hazardous to safe operation of aircraft.
On the night of the accident, the pilot elected to conduct the flight with more passengers than could be restrained in seats, which resulted in the airplane likely being loaded near its maximum allowable gross weight and beyond its aft center of gravity limit. The aggressive maneuvering described by the witness and as shown by radar data would have been challenging given the reduced visual references associated with dark night conditions, the loading of the airplane, and the unrestrained passenger, and ultimately resulted in the pilot’s loss of control at low altitude.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The non-certificated pilot's decision to perform aerobatic maneuvers in his overweight, improperly-loaded airplane in dark night conditions at low altitude, which resulted in a loss of airplane control and collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's established "anti-authority" attitude, as demonstrated by his behavior on the night of the accident and in the years prior.
A truely smart car would deliver the drunk driver home or at the police station. While playing lullabies.
Or, simply Kitt style call the cops to manually escort the occupant home, via the police station. And lock the car from manual override. Certainly no Turbo Boost access.
Or, simply Kitt style call the cops to manually escort the occupant home, via the police station. And lock the car from manual override. Certainly no Turbo Boost access.
Gotta love America. 0.21 blood alcohol content and Tesla is to blame . . .
Father of Tesla driver: 'Had she been in another vehicle she would have been alive'
I am sorry she is gone and as a dad feel for his loss, but 0.21 and speed equals murder suicide in any car. Maybe sue yourself for not doing a good job, the beer / booze provider, or the guy that planted the tree.
Father of Tesla driver: 'Had she been in another vehicle she would have been alive'
I am sorry she is gone and as a dad feel for his loss, but 0.21 and speed equals murder suicide in any car. Maybe sue yourself for not doing a good job, the beer / booze provider, or the guy that planted the tree.
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We will see. A severely drunk driver, speeding, on a twisty road, lost control, flew off the road, and people died.
It lead to the biggest class action suit against an automaker in history. It was the car's fault.
Never said the guy wouldn't win. I just said gotta love America. Land of the faultless.
I didn't know there was a wrong way driver involved as well. So I am guessing the sequence was drunk driver - driving too fast - then had to swerve suddenly for a car on the wrong side of the road - loss of control.
This is real simple, just like the Paul Walker case, the coroner can determine if the occupants were killed by the crash or in the flames afterwards based on certain autopsy signs like traces of smoke byproducts in the blood stream.
I'd even go farther to say the firefighters didn't make enough of an effort to put out the flames with water/foam so they could get to the victims if we are still making spurious claims....
FlatSix911
Porsche 918 Hybrid
Very Sad ... and disappointing commentary by the Father
Tesla crash: father of dead driver blames Tesla’s ‘rocketship-like’ acceleration for his daughter’s death
Last year, we reported on a tragic accident in a Tesla Model S in Indianapolis. The crash led to the death of Kevin McCarthy, the owner of the Model S and a passenger at the time of the accident since it was driven by her employee, Casey Speckman, who also died in the crash. Even though it happened last November, the accident is coming back into the news as the police revealed that both Speckman and McCarthy were intoxicated at the time of the accident. Despite the revelation, the father of the driver is blaming the death of his daughter on Tesla – going as far as saying that “had she been in another vehicle she would have been alive”.
The police report released last week highlighted the fact Casey Speckman’s blood-alcohol level tested at 0.21 percent – or almost 3 times the allowed limit. McCarthy also tested above the limit at 0.17 percent. While the high-speed and Speckman’s intoxication are obvious potential causes for the loss of control, Jon Speckman instead blames the Model S’ acceleration in an interview with Indy Star today:
“This is a vehicle that travels from 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds. She’s clearly having to swerve to miss a vehicle going the wrong way on a one-way street. If her foot should happen to hit the accelerator, it’s like a rocket ship. I don’t know why they have to make a car that does that.”
Tesla crash: father of dead driver blames Tesla’s ‘rocketship-like’ acceleration for his daughter’s death
Last year, we reported on a tragic accident in a Tesla Model S in Indianapolis. The crash led to the death of Kevin McCarthy, the owner of the Model S and a passenger at the time of the accident since it was driven by her employee, Casey Speckman, who also died in the crash. Even though it happened last November, the accident is coming back into the news as the police revealed that both Speckman and McCarthy were intoxicated at the time of the accident. Despite the revelation, the father of the driver is blaming the death of his daughter on Tesla – going as far as saying that “had she been in another vehicle she would have been alive”.
The police report released last week highlighted the fact Casey Speckman’s blood-alcohol level tested at 0.21 percent – or almost 3 times the allowed limit. McCarthy also tested above the limit at 0.17 percent. While the high-speed and Speckman’s intoxication are obvious potential causes for the loss of control, Jon Speckman instead blames the Model S’ acceleration in an interview with Indy Star today:
“This is a vehicle that travels from 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds. She’s clearly having to swerve to miss a vehicle going the wrong way on a one-way street. If her foot should happen to hit the accelerator, it’s like a rocket ship. I don’t know why they have to make a car that does that.”
It's Tesla's fault. They make cars that drunk friends of owners just HAVE to try the ludicrous mode in.
Seriously, I can imagine a drunk driver just not registring what happens in a launch. Life is a blur as it is. Let alone at night when intoxicated.
Seriously, I can imagine a drunk driver just not registring what happens in a launch. Life is a blur as it is. Let alone at night when intoxicated.
Jevi_S85D
Member
I managed to locate the exact spot where the accident happened on Google maps. It was a road in a predominantly industrial area. At 1am it must have been a pretty quiet place. And what were they doing there ? Not driving directly home as far as I could investigate. My theory is that the car owner took his employee to this deserted road so she could try out his fast car.
He probably said "pedal to the metal" but forgot that there was a bend on the otherwise straight road and before he remembered the speed was much too high and the driver much too drunk to handle it. Sad story.
He probably said "pedal to the metal" but forgot that there was a bend on the otherwise straight road and before he remembered the speed was much too high and the driver much too drunk to handle it. Sad story.
The area is one of the main roads leading from the city center/downtown to the residential suburb north of the city, where at least one of the occupants lived. It would be the road I would take when 'driving home' between those areas. One would not have to go out of one's way to be at this location at this time, assuming one was downtown until late.
Speed (likely 2x the speed limit on a road with many intersections) and alcohol (3x the legal limit) certainly were factors. The wrong-way driver on this one-way road, mentioned in the Indy Star article (with corroborating video), likely also played a factor, as did the S-curve in the otherwise straight stretch of road.
None of those things have anything to do with Tesla.
I agree that the outcome is sad and heartbreaking for both families and friends/coworkers, but I think the father's grief and rage is quite misguided.
Interesting. The new fact in this info is that another cause is that there was another car, captured on video, going the wrong way against the Tesla just before the crash.
the two cars seem to pass each other right at the 16th and Illinois intersection and then the Tesla is visible still going ahead but presumably crashed just after leaving the video, perhaps at one of the trees on the rt side.
So the multiple causes of this accident are:
1. drunk driver
2. speeding driver
3. driver lost control by driving into tree
and now:
4. on-coming traffic from driver driving the wrong way down a one way road (possibly also drunk and speeding).
Those are the responsible causes for this accident. It is a unfortunate confluence of circumstances. The most blameworthy causes are almost certainly #1 and #4.
If a lawyer tries to add to that list:
5. the car does 0-60 in 3 seconds
as a negligent contributing factor, he will just be taking advantage of the distress of the family.
the two cars seem to pass each other right at the 16th and Illinois intersection and then the Tesla is visible still going ahead but presumably crashed just after leaving the video, perhaps at one of the trees on the rt side.
So the multiple causes of this accident are:
1. drunk driver
2. speeding driver
3. driver lost control by driving into tree
and now:
4. on-coming traffic from driver driving the wrong way down a one way road (possibly also drunk and speeding).
Those are the responsible causes for this accident. It is a unfortunate confluence of circumstances. The most blameworthy causes are almost certainly #1 and #4.
If a lawyer tries to add to that list:
5. the car does 0-60 in 3 seconds
as a negligent contributing factor, he will just be taking advantage of the distress of the family.
There are lots of cars out there with similar acceleration. Even cars with much more humble acceleration would have killed someone just as dead given all the other factors involved.
As much as I'm sure the father wishes things were different, his daughter did something very foolish along with something unexpected happening and paid the ultimate price for it. The high performance of the car may have contributed to her being there in the first place, but she'd probably be dead if it was a Corvette, Porsche, or even a Ford Fusion all else being equal.
As much as I'm sure the father wishes things were different, his daughter did something very foolish along with something unexpected happening and paid the ultimate price for it. The high performance of the car may have contributed to her being there in the first place, but she'd probably be dead if it was a Corvette, Porsche, or even a Ford Fusion all else being equal.
I like your optimism that they weren't in area they shouldn't be because of other "reasons".....
I read through the 8 pages, and cannot find anywhere what the speed was. Read somewhere the speed limit on the road was 30mph. What was the speed of the car? 50mph? 60, or 100?
My condolences to both the families. Clearly, at least to me, the alcohol had the major role to play. everyone agrees, including the dad of the driver. You know, I think everyone deserves a second chance in life, the poor as well as the rich. The rich have a better chance by buying the best stuff to protect them - in case things happen - whether due to their own fault or others' fault. The car owner bought the Tesla because of all kinds of reasons, the performance as well as the safety aspects. Yes, he made a BIG mistake, no doubt. But hey, I would think many many stupid and crazy drivers more drunk get away with minor scratches with 50-80Mph crashes. Luck/chance etc. We and our family sleeps safe thinking we bought a revolutionary car, that is both environment-friendly, fun as well as safe. My concern is about the "safe" aspect now - and this accident has seriously got me concerned about Model S's safety ability.
I am looking at the damage to the car and to the occupants, hitting a stationary object. The crash tests by NHTSA et al also hit stationary objects, full frontal as well as offset. This was likely an offset accident (a narrow stationary tree trunk) and left car parts flying off up to 150 yards. So it can't really be 50 or 60mph - those are the speeds of cars hitting NHTSA stationary objects and the passenger area remains stable, and the major/heavy parts (like axle) don't really fly off. The speed had to be way above 60 - likely 80 or 100Mph. Right? I also read the car didn't get a chance to send the data to Tesla, so Tesla likely doesn't have any reading of actual speed. But from the video footage (parking lot), couldn't one calculate the speed (how long the car was in the frame + the distance it traveled)? If indeed the car was going about or less than 60-70Mph and has these disturbing disintegration (including battery modules), it is indeed something to worry about for all Tesla owners. It makes me quite worried - to the point of me reading all the pages and hoping Tesla did investigation on their own and determine why the damage was so catastrophic.
My condolences to both the families. Clearly, at least to me, the alcohol had the major role to play. everyone agrees, including the dad of the driver. You know, I think everyone deserves a second chance in life, the poor as well as the rich. The rich have a better chance by buying the best stuff to protect them - in case things happen - whether due to their own fault or others' fault. The car owner bought the Tesla because of all kinds of reasons, the performance as well as the safety aspects. Yes, he made a BIG mistake, no doubt. But hey, I would think many many stupid and crazy drivers more drunk get away with minor scratches with 50-80Mph crashes. Luck/chance etc. We and our family sleeps safe thinking we bought a revolutionary car, that is both environment-friendly, fun as well as safe. My concern is about the "safe" aspect now - and this accident has seriously got me concerned about Model S's safety ability.
I am looking at the damage to the car and to the occupants, hitting a stationary object. The crash tests by NHTSA et al also hit stationary objects, full frontal as well as offset. This was likely an offset accident (a narrow stationary tree trunk) and left car parts flying off up to 150 yards. So it can't really be 50 or 60mph - those are the speeds of cars hitting NHTSA stationary objects and the passenger area remains stable, and the major/heavy parts (like axle) don't really fly off. The speed had to be way above 60 - likely 80 or 100Mph. Right? I also read the car didn't get a chance to send the data to Tesla, so Tesla likely doesn't have any reading of actual speed. But from the video footage (parking lot), couldn't one calculate the speed (how long the car was in the frame + the distance it traveled)? If indeed the car was going about or less than 60-70Mph and has these disturbing disintegration (including battery modules), it is indeed something to worry about for all Tesla owners. It makes me quite worried - to the point of me reading all the pages and hoping Tesla did investigation on their own and determine why the damage was so catastrophic.
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