Secure Those Loads! -- Teen killed when hay bale falls from truck: Charges pending

[Diggin It]

There is undoubtedly more to this story.

I'm guessing it was probably a round bale, but news stories don't seem to bother with those kinds of details in most cases.

 

[m5040]

Could have been a round bail that rolled off the trailer. Could have been a square bail too. I can see where a 50 or 60 lb square bail would blast through a windshield easily when hitting it at a combined force of 100 - 120 mph. Especially if it hit the windshield, end first, straight off the trailer. Another possibility is the bale hit the car and he veered off the road and hit something else or rolled over. As the SHP says around here regarding deer on the road... "Hit them. Do not try to avoid them." Deer accidents are far less likely to result in injuries if you just drive into the deer rather than trying to avoid them. Avoiding them likely results in your car off the road and either rolling it or hitting a tree. Most deer accident deaths are caused by someone trying to avoid the deer. Kill the deer, save a life.

That's my point, the experts say to hit the deer, even know it is infinitely more solid and heavy then a bale of hay. My training and experience says that even low caliber ammunition sometimes won't penetrate a windshield. They use hay bales at race tracks for crash protection because it absorbs energy. A freak accident can happen, look what happened to the lady drinking a hot cup of coffee, but at least she was proportionally compensated.

 

[CobyRupert]

It was a round bale.

"The accident occurred at 2:49 p.m. Saturday about five miles north of Fayetteville. According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, a 2014 Ford F-250, driven by 21-year-old Zachary Hannah of Petersburg, was northbound on the Shelbyville Highway. As he rounded a curve, a round bale of hay became unsecured, coming off the trailer Hannah was pulling, striking Tuten's vehicle, a 2012 Nissan Versa which was southbound."

"...became unsecured..." - implies it was previously secured. How can they say it was secured if it falls off? Secured with reasonable care? Only secured for driving on straightaways? Mechanical failure (e.g. strap broke)?

"According to the district attorney general's office, no criminal charges are expected at this time, but the accident remains under review.
"It is with a heavy heart that I ask you to pray for our Tiger family at the loss of one of our seniors, wrote Dr. Janine Wilson, director of Fayetteville City Schools"

Elation turns to tragedy after loss of FHS student | News | elkvalleytimes.com

 

[Jstpssng]

That might have been my post, but I was being sarcastic to try and get the point across on how important our food source is and how lawmakers can go overboard with unneeded regulations. I wish people that criticize farming would put in a day working at a farm and see what it's all about and how easy it is. I would believe that someone inside a motor vehicle can be hurt by a square hay bale when I see the report. The other person that posted hit one and even his radiator survived. It didn't seem close to a fatal crash even know he said combined speed was 120 mph. I have seen cars hit square bales which fall apart into clumps of grass/straw and the car keeps on going. There is undoubtedly more to this story.

In a perfect world farmers would be held to the same standards as everybody else, and we would be willing to pay the full cost of production. In the world that we live in, the more something is needed for basic living the less we are willing to pay. People prefer to spend their money on non essentials, and many (most?) take necessities like food, water, and even clean air for granted.

 

[Teachu2]

Those "small square" bales of hay weigh 125lbs, not 50. Sixteen to a ton. Back when they were tied together (baled) with baling wire, they could take an impact and often remain intact. These days, at least here, they are baled with nylon twine.

Could have easily resulted in loss of control and a crash, especially if the driver had a moment of panic. Attempting to avoid a collision is often worse than just taking the hit.

 

[Fallon]

That's my point, the experts say to hit the deer, even know it is infinitely more solid and heavy then a bale of hay. My training and experience says that even low caliber ammunition sometimes won't penetrate a windshield. They use hay bales at race tracks for crash protection because it absorbs energy. A freak accident can happen, look what happened to the lady drinking a hot cup of coffee, but at least she was proportionally compensated.

That old lady was given 3rd degree burns by an extremely negligent company that was serving massively overheated beverages in violation of many industry & health guidelines. She just wanted McDonalds to pay for medical expenses & if I recall stop serving coffee at dangerous tempatures. She was also not nearly the first to he injured in that manner, I think dozens. We are talking massive 3rd degree skin burns with blistering & skin loss not ow I burned my taste buds. Life threatening injuries on old people. Mcdonalds told her to pound sand. The lawsuit & resulting damages were the result.

McDonalds then engaged in a massive multimillion dollar PR campaign trying to frame her as a money grubbing leech.

That McDonalds coffee lawsuit is actually an example of the system working the way it should.

 

[m5040]

Old lady? It was massively overheated? That's how elderly people make their tea, by massively overheating water until it boils. I would have thought that an "old lady" would know better.