rachelmanija (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rachelmanija) wrote2008-08-04 03:54 pm
rachelmanija) wrote2008-08-04 03:54 pm
Entry tags:
This is getting to be a habit
This weekend while driving in Pasadena I turned the corner and saw a plume of smoke. An SUV in a parking lot had flames erupting from the hood. No one was visible anywhere nearby.
I pulled over across the street, grabbed my fire extinguisher, and ran to the crosswalk. Two security guards ran up from the general direction of the burning SUV, and began stopping traffic.
I ran up to one and said, "Is anyone inside that vehicle?"
He said, "No. And I don't think you should get near it-- a fire truck is on its way, and that fire is getting bigger by the second."
I retreated across the street. There was a loud explosion from the SUV. The whole thing became enveloped in flames. The fire truck pulled up and extinguished it. They broke the windows and opened the doors, and smoke billowed out in great gray puffs. I then had a very bad moment when it occurred to me that I should have asked the guard the follow-up question, "Did you check?" But the firefighters didn't pull anyone out and I waited for quite a while, so I assume there had not been anyone inside.
When I later recounted this to Adrian (who is still in Denver), it occurred to me that perhaps burning vehicles are less uncommon than I imagined, and it is not so odd that I would have encountered this phenomenon three times.
"How many burning vehicles have you seen in your life?" I asked him.
"None," he replied. "So I leave for a week, and you get an earthquake and a flaming SUV... you just can't be left alone, can you?"
Public service announcement # 1: Vehicles do not normally catch fire following a crash! If a crashed vehicle is not burning and there are no other urgent safety hazards, do not attempt to extract the occupants or exit the vehicle! Crash victims should stay where they are and not move until medical personnell can make sure their spines are stabilized.
Public service announcement # 2: If a vehicle is already burning, especially if the engine is on fire, be aware that the fire can and probably will spread really fucking quickly. (This goes for non-vehicular fires as well.) I've now seen this happen twice. Get the hell out or get anyone inside out as fast as you can.
Scientific Livejournal Poll!
[Poll #1235218]
I pulled over across the street, grabbed my fire extinguisher, and ran to the crosswalk. Two security guards ran up from the general direction of the burning SUV, and began stopping traffic.
I ran up to one and said, "Is anyone inside that vehicle?"
He said, "No. And I don't think you should get near it-- a fire truck is on its way, and that fire is getting bigger by the second."
I retreated across the street. There was a loud explosion from the SUV. The whole thing became enveloped in flames. The fire truck pulled up and extinguished it. They broke the windows and opened the doors, and smoke billowed out in great gray puffs. I then had a very bad moment when it occurred to me that I should have asked the guard the follow-up question, "Did you check?" But the firefighters didn't pull anyone out and I waited for quite a while, so I assume there had not been anyone inside.
When I later recounted this to Adrian (who is still in Denver), it occurred to me that perhaps burning vehicles are less uncommon than I imagined, and it is not so odd that I would have encountered this phenomenon three times.
"How many burning vehicles have you seen in your life?" I asked him.
"None," he replied. "So I leave for a week, and you get an earthquake and a flaming SUV... you just can't be left alone, can you?"
Public service announcement # 1: Vehicles do not normally catch fire following a crash! If a crashed vehicle is not burning and there are no other urgent safety hazards, do not attempt to extract the occupants or exit the vehicle! Crash victims should stay where they are and not move until medical personnell can make sure their spines are stabilized.
Public service announcement # 2: If a vehicle is already burning, especially if the engine is on fire, be aware that the fire can and probably will spread really fucking quickly. (This goes for non-vehicular fires as well.) I've now seen this happen twice. Get the hell out or get anyone inside out as fast as you can.
Scientific Livejournal Poll!
[Poll #1235218]
no subject
[x] Been in a car accident and injured/stuck/unable to move/forbidden to exit the vehicle by a first aider, and been TERRIFIED the vehicle was going to burst into flames which didn't help with the general terrified and freaking out, KTHX stupid TV stereotypes which I didn't know better about, HISS.
no subject
The movie thing is a problem. Either people assume it's true and that crashed cars commonly explode, or they think that it's completely untrue and that car fires are not all that dangerous-- and neither is correct.
no subject
Also, the four people from the other vehicle were able to get their car doors open and walk (so they did so), and therefore the local ambulance team decided that since they "had been moved" they each had to go in the ambulance one at a time before they could come remove me from my car. According to the first aider, I was there for 53 minutes from the time he arrived until the time the ambulance finally took me away.
Which is a whole other source of bitterness and off topic, but I wanted to make clear that I meant *no* criticism to the first aider who was a real hero to whom I am incredibly grateful. Unfortunately I wasn't in any state to be able to remember his name. :(
[edit: dang typos!]