Leroy N. Soetoro
2017-04-02 22:19:00 UTC
http://nypost.com/2017/04/01/witness-accounts-prove-texting-while-driving-
is-never-worth-it/
HOUSTON A witness says the driver of a pickup truck that collided with a
church minibus in rural Texas, killing 13 people, acknowledged he had been
texting while driving a development that highlights the dangers of
sending messages on smartphones while behind the wheel.
Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Conrad Hein wouldnt comment Friday
on whether texting might have played a role in the Wednesday collision on
a two-lane road about 75 miles west (120 km) of San Antonio, near the town
of Concan. But officials have said the truck driver appeared to have
crossed the center line.
Jennifer Morrison, the investigator in charge of the team from the
National Transportation Safety Board, would only say that distracted
driving will be among the issues investigated.
The witness who is saying the pickup driver was texting while driving
recounted the incident Friday in an interview with The Associated Press.
Jody Kuchler, a 55-year-old self-employed welder, said he and his
girlfriend were driving back to their home in the nearby town of Leakey
when he came across a truck that was driving erratically across the road.
He kept going off the road and into oncoming traffic and he just kept
doing that, said Kuchler, who first shared the account of what happened
with the San Antonio Express-News.
Kuchler, who followed the truck for at least 15 minutes, said he called
the sheriffs offices for both Uvalde and Real counties and told them
they needed to get him off the road before he hit somebody.
Kuchler said he witnessed the crash and afterward, he checked on both the
bus and the truck and was able to speak with the driver of the truck, who
the Department of Public Safety has identified as 20-year-old Jack Dillon
Young, of Leakey.
He said, Im sorry, Im sorry. I was texting. I said, Son, do you know
what you just did? He said, Im sorry. Im sorry,' Kuchler recalled.
Texas is unusual in that it has no statewide ban on texting while driving.
Dozens of cities across the state prohibit the practice, but local
ordinances may not have applied in the rural area where Wednesdays crash
occurred. Laws in 46 other states ban sending or reading email, using apps
or engaging in other use of the internet while driving.
The Republican-controlled Texas Legislature approved a statewide ban in
2011 but it was vetoed by then-Gov. Rick Perry, who characterized such
prohibitions as government micromanagement and said educating drivers was
the key to deterrence. A similar proposal passed the Texas House a few
weeks ago but has yet to make it to a Senate floor vote.
The wreck on Wednesday occurred along a curve in the road where the speed
limit is 65 mph, according to Department of Public Safety officials. The
bus occupants members of First Baptist Church of New Braunfels in Texas
were returning from a three-day retreat in Leakey, about 9 miles (15
kilometers) from where the crash happened.
Twelve people on the bus died at the scene, authorities said. Another died
at a hospital. One bus passenger remains hospitalized in serious but
stable condition, according to the church.
Young, the driver of the pickup, also remains hospitalized.
The number of motor vehicle deaths in the U.S. last year topped 40,000 for
the first time since 2007, according to the National Safety Council. The
number of vehicle crash deaths in Texas rose 7 percent last year to 3,464,
slightly higher than the national rise. One-in-10 driving fatalities in
2015 were caused by some kind of distraction, the U.S Department of
Transportation said.
Morrison said most, if not all, of the bus occupants in the Texas crash
who ranged in age from 61 to 87 were wearing seat belts. The driver and
front-passenger seats had three-point lap-and-shoulder belts while the
rest of the seats behind had lap belts only, she said.
Three-point seat belts are always preferable to lap belts because they
hold the upper torso in place and help prevent head injuries, said
automotive safety advocate Joan Claybrook. One of the problems with lap
belts only is that in a frontal impact crash, people will remain in their
seats but their upper bodies will go forward and their heads can strike
the back of the seat in front, she said.
If the passengers wearing lap-only belts are seated along the sides of the
buses, instead of facing forward, they will often hit their heads on the
sides of the vehicle or the windows, said Henry Jasny, senior vice
president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. A frontal crash of
this type would be like hitting a brick wall, he said.
The NTSB identified the church vehicle as a 2004 Ford E-350 series van
that had been converted to a minibus. According to the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, the only safety issues identified with that
vehicle model from that particular year was a fuse problem reported in
2007 in vehicles that had been retrofitted to become ambulances.
http://nypost.com/2017/04/01/witness-accounts-prove-texting-while-driving-
is-never-worth-it/
--
Donald J. Trump, 304 electoral votes to 227, defeated compulsive liar in
denial Hillary Rodham Clinton on December 19th, 2016. The clown car
parade of the democrat party has run out of gas.
Congratulations President Trump. Thank you for ending the disaster of the
Obama presidency.
Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp.
ObamaCare is a total 100% failure and no lie that can be put forth by its
supporters can dispute that.
Obama jobs, the result of ObamaCare. 12-15 working hours a week at minimum
wage, no benefits and the primary revenue stream for ObamaCare. It can't
be funded with money people don't have, yet liberals lie about how great
it is.
Obama increased total debt from $10 trillion to $20 trillion in the eight
years he was in office, and sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood queer
liberal democrat donors.
is-never-worth-it/
HOUSTON A witness says the driver of a pickup truck that collided with a
church minibus in rural Texas, killing 13 people, acknowledged he had been
texting while driving a development that highlights the dangers of
sending messages on smartphones while behind the wheel.
Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Conrad Hein wouldnt comment Friday
on whether texting might have played a role in the Wednesday collision on
a two-lane road about 75 miles west (120 km) of San Antonio, near the town
of Concan. But officials have said the truck driver appeared to have
crossed the center line.
Jennifer Morrison, the investigator in charge of the team from the
National Transportation Safety Board, would only say that distracted
driving will be among the issues investigated.
The witness who is saying the pickup driver was texting while driving
recounted the incident Friday in an interview with The Associated Press.
Jody Kuchler, a 55-year-old self-employed welder, said he and his
girlfriend were driving back to their home in the nearby town of Leakey
when he came across a truck that was driving erratically across the road.
He kept going off the road and into oncoming traffic and he just kept
doing that, said Kuchler, who first shared the account of what happened
with the San Antonio Express-News.
Kuchler, who followed the truck for at least 15 minutes, said he called
the sheriffs offices for both Uvalde and Real counties and told them
they needed to get him off the road before he hit somebody.
Kuchler said he witnessed the crash and afterward, he checked on both the
bus and the truck and was able to speak with the driver of the truck, who
the Department of Public Safety has identified as 20-year-old Jack Dillon
Young, of Leakey.
He said, Im sorry, Im sorry. I was texting. I said, Son, do you know
what you just did? He said, Im sorry. Im sorry,' Kuchler recalled.
Texas is unusual in that it has no statewide ban on texting while driving.
Dozens of cities across the state prohibit the practice, but local
ordinances may not have applied in the rural area where Wednesdays crash
occurred. Laws in 46 other states ban sending or reading email, using apps
or engaging in other use of the internet while driving.
The Republican-controlled Texas Legislature approved a statewide ban in
2011 but it was vetoed by then-Gov. Rick Perry, who characterized such
prohibitions as government micromanagement and said educating drivers was
the key to deterrence. A similar proposal passed the Texas House a few
weeks ago but has yet to make it to a Senate floor vote.
The wreck on Wednesday occurred along a curve in the road where the speed
limit is 65 mph, according to Department of Public Safety officials. The
bus occupants members of First Baptist Church of New Braunfels in Texas
were returning from a three-day retreat in Leakey, about 9 miles (15
kilometers) from where the crash happened.
Twelve people on the bus died at the scene, authorities said. Another died
at a hospital. One bus passenger remains hospitalized in serious but
stable condition, according to the church.
Young, the driver of the pickup, also remains hospitalized.
The number of motor vehicle deaths in the U.S. last year topped 40,000 for
the first time since 2007, according to the National Safety Council. The
number of vehicle crash deaths in Texas rose 7 percent last year to 3,464,
slightly higher than the national rise. One-in-10 driving fatalities in
2015 were caused by some kind of distraction, the U.S Department of
Transportation said.
Morrison said most, if not all, of the bus occupants in the Texas crash
who ranged in age from 61 to 87 were wearing seat belts. The driver and
front-passenger seats had three-point lap-and-shoulder belts while the
rest of the seats behind had lap belts only, she said.
Three-point seat belts are always preferable to lap belts because they
hold the upper torso in place and help prevent head injuries, said
automotive safety advocate Joan Claybrook. One of the problems with lap
belts only is that in a frontal impact crash, people will remain in their
seats but their upper bodies will go forward and their heads can strike
the back of the seat in front, she said.
If the passengers wearing lap-only belts are seated along the sides of the
buses, instead of facing forward, they will often hit their heads on the
sides of the vehicle or the windows, said Henry Jasny, senior vice
president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. A frontal crash of
this type would be like hitting a brick wall, he said.
The NTSB identified the church vehicle as a 2004 Ford E-350 series van
that had been converted to a minibus. According to the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, the only safety issues identified with that
vehicle model from that particular year was a fuse problem reported in
2007 in vehicles that had been retrofitted to become ambulances.
http://nypost.com/2017/04/01/witness-accounts-prove-texting-while-driving-
is-never-worth-it/
--
Donald J. Trump, 304 electoral votes to 227, defeated compulsive liar in
denial Hillary Rodham Clinton on December 19th, 2016. The clown car
parade of the democrat party has run out of gas.
Congratulations President Trump. Thank you for ending the disaster of the
Obama presidency.
Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp.
ObamaCare is a total 100% failure and no lie that can be put forth by its
supporters can dispute that.
Obama jobs, the result of ObamaCare. 12-15 working hours a week at minimum
wage, no benefits and the primary revenue stream for ObamaCare. It can't
be funded with money people don't have, yet liberals lie about how great
it is.
Obama increased total debt from $10 trillion to $20 trillion in the eight
years he was in office, and sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood queer
liberal democrat donors.