Bale falls off trailer, strikes motorcycle driver causing wreck

[Dutch445]

I was thinking about this load i saw yesterday, look at the back strap, almost looks like
it's pulling the top bales off! same thing could have happened

 

[sixdogs]

Wow, that one is scary.

 

[k0ua]

The worst wreck I was ever involved in was due to someone losing 3 hay bales in the roadway. Cars everywhere skidding and swerving.. Me doing the same.I was not seriously hurt, but others were. You don't have to be on a motorcycle to suffer from the hay in the road thing. Secure you loads.

James K0UA

 

[94BULLITT]

The worst wreck I was ever involved in was due to someone losing 3 hay bales in the roadway. Cars everywhere skidding and swerving.. Me doing the same.I was not seriously hurt, but others were. You don't have to be on a motorcycle to suffer from the hay in the road thing. Secure you loads.

James K0UA

Were they round or square bales? A square bale would be bad enough to hit but I can't imagine hitting a round bale.

 

[k0ua]

Were they round or square bales? A square bale would be bad enough to hit but I can't imagine hitting a round bale.

Square, I don't think anyone hit any of the bales, It is what we all did to avoid the bales and wound up hitting each other.

 

[creekbend]

I see people hauling hay all the time not secured.

The same around here too. One of my neighbors hauls round bales all during the winter from his Parents' farm which is 30 miles one way. I know for a fact that they are not tied or secured. Anytime that I come upon a vehicle or trailer hauling hay, I keep my distance and put my flashers on.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

I did 22 years in USAF Transportation.

There is no excuse for losing part of a load, except criminal negligence.

Every accident case I investigated involving loss of a load, trailer disconnect, broken or loosened straps or chains, or tie down points was identifiable in advance and preventable with ordinary due diligence. Being government military, being too cheap to buy the supplies needed was never a problem. It was always the driver being in too much of a hurry to do the job right, check or double check the load initially or periodically in transport.

 

[sixdogs]

We used to sell small square bales when we lived in very rural New England and you would be surprised at the reckless ways normally intelligent and thoughtful people go about tying down a load of hay. Usually, it's a mini-pickup with hay over the bed edges and even stacked onto the cab. Maybe 20 to 35 bales at 42-45 lb each and tied with baling twine. People often joked about losing one on the way home.

As a result, when I see a load of hay on the highway I steer way clear and back off.

 

[QRTRHRS]

When I haul hay, I tend to over tie it. Beyond hurting someone, a lost bale is money thrown away. Fresh baled hay is more stable than hay that has sat in a barn for a time causing the twine to loosen somewhat.

When I was using my dump trailer to haul fresh hay, I would have two or three layers above the trailer sides I would run two lonig straps in line with the trailer on top of the hay and cross tie a strap front and rear. Loose hay, I would run three straps length wise and also cross tie every row.

One of my suppliers was teasing me one day about the front cross tie. The hay was baled heavy about 60-80 pounds. He suggested that front cross tie was overkill. Those heavy bales would never move. Well, I skipped the cross tie. Got up to about 50mph and dang if the front middle bale did lift up and out and smash on the road.

No body got hurt. I never again skipped a tie down. And, I do cringe when I see some of the tie down jobs or lack of going down the road.

 

[Kaliburz]

I was thinking about this load i saw yesterday, look at the back strap, almost looks like
it's pulling the top bales off! same thing could have happened

View attachment 328201

Ack....that should not have been loaded in the back! That would need two straps, one in the front, if not, center the dang strap or to the front a bit more.

I've seen pickups loaded w/ hay overhanging the sides by a bit. The way they "secure" them was just stacking another set on top...