Woman in car stuck on drawbridge as it rises!
- Thread starter stinkynuts
- Start date
I think a car will hold at a 45 degree angle. Off the top of my head, 60 degrees to 70 degrees is the absolute max. The problem is, some of the lift bridges open to 80 or 90 degrees. At 90 degrees, you had better be a cat or an insect, because a car won't hold on and the impact will be a killer.
I wouldn't like to be in that car however, and I bet all 4 brakes in that car were in good condition too.
I wouldn't like to be in that car however, and I bet all 4 brakes in that car were in good condition too.
Im sure the bridge was heading close to 90 degrees if they didn't stop it... Lucky woman driverCassini said:I think a car will hold at a 45 degree angle. Off the top of my head, 60 degrees to 70 degrees is the absolute max. The problem is, some of the lift bridges open to 80 or 90 degrees. At 90 degrees, you had better be a cat or an insect, because a car won't hold on and the impact will be a killer.
I wouldn't like to be in that car however, and I bet all 4 brakes in that car were in good condition too.
Over the years, I've been involved in some construction road closings - temporary ones like 4 hours, or 8 hours, whatever.
It never ceases to amaze me how you can put up signs, barrels, cops, flagmen, everything under the sun and women just drive right around them.
Was working on Dufferin Street one time under a bridge and we had all of the above and this chubby soccer mom just circumvents it all and almost ends up in the excavation. When asked, "what are you doing?" she just goes shrill till you tell her that you don't care, just shut up and I'll back you out of this mess.
Women have tunnel vision when they drive I swear. They just figure, "but I want to go there"
It never ceases to amaze me how you can put up signs, barrels, cops, flagmen, everything under the sun and women just drive right around them.
Was working on Dufferin Street one time under a bridge and we had all of the above and this chubby soccer mom just circumvents it all and almost ends up in the excavation. When asked, "what are you doing?" she just goes shrill till you tell her that you don't care, just shut up and I'll back you out of this mess.
Women have tunnel vision when they drive I swear. They just figure, "but I want to go there"
If that's the case (they lowered the bridge) she's lucky that they COULD lower the bridge.jaycam said:Im sure the bridge was heading close to 90 degrees if they didn't stop it... Lucky woman driver
If there's a 50,000 ton oil tanker coming through loaded with something that could go boom, that ships not going to stop too fast and they would have a choice to make - keep lifting the bridge so that the ship can go through without tearing out the bridge and exploding the ship into a fireball that could kill scores of people and kill the woman, or lower the bridge in an effort to save a stupid person and explode the ship.
I love the last line:
"I want to ask her what was going through her mind and how hard she had that brake pushed down."
LOL I bet the brake pedal arm is bent lol....I can imagine her sitting there, whtie knuckles gripping the steering wheel as she pushed the brake pedal with all her might lol........
(I wonder if she had to go home and change her underwear afterwards too)
I wonder though: how fast do the arms come down and the wings start to rise? If she was driving really slowly and the arms went down behind her then I could see her getting to that position. But if it was me, and I made it past the split, I'd hit the gas as the wing was rising......I also wonder if the operator didn't check to see if the bridge was clear before lifting it....I bet that's why the operator let her go......
"I want to ask her what was going through her mind and how hard she had that brake pushed down."
LOL I bet the brake pedal arm is bent lol....I can imagine her sitting there, whtie knuckles gripping the steering wheel as she pushed the brake pedal with all her might lol........
(I wonder if she had to go home and change her underwear afterwards too)
I wonder though: how fast do the arms come down and the wings start to rise? If she was driving really slowly and the arms went down behind her then I could see her getting to that position. But if it was me, and I made it past the split, I'd hit the gas as the wing was rising......I also wonder if the operator didn't check to see if the bridge was clear before lifting it....I bet that's why the operator let her go......
That is what I couldn't understand. Once the bridge starts lifting, I would want to coast down to the bottom.tboy said:I wonder though: how fast do the arms come down and the wings start to rise? If she was driving really slowly and the arms went down behind her then I could see her getting to that position. But if it was me, and I made it past the split, I'd hit the gas as the wing was rising......I also wonder if the operator didn't check to see if the bridge was clear before lifting it....I bet that's why the operator let her go......
Even if the car was stalled, I wouldn't want to be stuck that high up on the bridge. You could just lift the brake pedal up, and gently coast the car down. If the bridge was at a 10 degree angle, it would be an easy glide.
Don't wait for the brakes to fail to get to the bottom of that ramp. Even if the bridge goes to 90 degrees, if you are at the bottom and you flip the car it won't hurt to badly. Skidding down an 80 degree ramp for a few hundred feet, the landing's going to hurt ...
