Another wreck on 30A Saturday July 11

Glad no one was seriously hurt.

I hope you told your granddaughter that the first car crash is always the most traumatic. Barring catastrophic injury or death, she'll take the next one--and statistically speaking it will happen at some point or another--in stride. Well, except for when she sees her insurance bill.

Ditto that on no one getting hurt. I live up county and cringe when I have to drive down county during the tourist season. What is the speed limit on that part of 30A? Two techniques I was taught in driver's ed: 1. Stop far enough behind the car in front that you can see its tires on the roadway. 2. If stopped in a main roadway somewhere other than at an intersection, put on your flashers to alert drivers behind that the traffic is not moving.

As for the accident on 98, well I'm not surprised the way people drive along there zig-zagging in/out of traffic at speeds well over the limit and tailgating with no space for reaction or safe stopping.

In fact, reports by the New York State Police show that the following factors (in order) cause the most accidents - and all of them are under the driver's control:

1. Speeding
2. Unsafe or too-frequent lane changing
3. Not using turn signals
4. Tailgating
5. Not yielding the right of way
6. Ignoring traffic signals
7. Driving while impaired by alcohol or chemicals.

I agree with the suggestion to drive more carefully than we usually do ... that's a good idea any time. And the way folks drive around here, it wouldn't take much to make a BIG difference.

Lastly, I don't accept it as a fait accompli that I will be involved in even one accident, much less more than one. Since Mermaid mentions statistics, here are some interesting ones for all of us to think about:

26% of drivers have had an accident in the last five years
25% of all car accidents involve drivers talking on cell phones
Nearly 50% of drivers between ages of 18 and 24 send text messages while driving
21% of fatal crashes involving 16-19 year old drivers resulted from cell phone distraction
80% of all drivers involved in motor vehicle accidents claim it's the other driver's fault

Law enforcement officers are also generally quick to remind us that the chance of a motor vehicle accident increase by 50% once the sun goes down.

Compared with other vehicle types, utility vehicles experienced the highest rollover rates in fatal crashes (33.7 percent) and in injury crashes (10.2 percent). Large trucks, pickups, and utility vehicles experienced the highest rollover rates in property-damage-only crashes (2.2 percent).

Seems there are more wrecks in sleepy S. Walton than my stomping ground. Speaking of hazard lights, I have found when driving in torrential rains, I am the only person with hazards on and moving quite slowly. Hazards do help other drivers see you.

Well, truck drivers and myself are generally the ones with hazards on - oooh, that reminds me, I have got to get a citizens band radio.

Y'all be safe down there and glad no one was hurt. The car that took off is very suspect - DUI, perhaps????? As was certainly not in the wrong.

Seems there are more wrecks in sleepy S. Walton than my stomping ground. Speaking of hazard lights, I have found when driving in torrential rains, I am the only person with hazards on and moving quite slowly. Hazards do help other drivers see you.

Well, truck drivers and myself are generally the ones with hazards on - oooh, that reminds me, I have got to get a citizens band radio.

Y'all be safe down there and glad no one was hurt. The car that took off is very suspect - DUI, perhaps????? As was certainly not in the wrong.

10-4 good buddy!

Kat - I'm so sorry! I'm glad to hear that there were no injuries!! On another note - I had no idea you had a granddaughter! I'm happy to know she is ok as well.

I hope you told your granddaughter that the first car crash is always the most traumatic. Barring catastrophic injury or death, she'll take the next one--and statistically speaking it will happen at some point or another--in stride. Well, except for when she sees her insurance bill.

Well, no I didn't tell her that. I gave her lots of hugs and was just glad they were okay. I'm not really sure what you mean by taking additional accidents in stride. I don't feel that way at all.

Ditto that on no one getting hurt. I live up county and cringe when I have to drive down county during the tourist season. What is the speed limit on that part of 30A? Two techniques I was taught in driver's ed: 1. Stop far enough behind the car in front that you can see its tires on the roadway. 2. If stopped in a main roadway somewhere other than at an intersection, put on your flashers to alert drivers behind that the traffic is not moving.

As for the accident on 98, well I'm not surprised the way people drive along there zig-zagging in/out of traffic at speeds well over the limit and tailgating with no space for reaction or safe stopping.

In fact, reports by the New York State Police show that the following factors (in order) cause the most accidents - and all of them are under the driver's control:

1. Speeding
2. Unsafe or too-frequent lane changing
3. Not using turn signals
4. Tailgating
5. Not yielding the right of way
6. Ignoring traffic signals
7. Driving while impaired by alcohol or chemicals.

I agree with the suggestion to drive more carefully than we usually do ... that's a good idea any time. And the way folks drive around here, it wouldn't take much to make a BIG difference.

Lastly, I don't accept it as a fait accompli that I will be involved in even one accident, much less more than one. Since Mermaid mentions statistics, here are some interesting ones for all of us to think about:

26% of drivers have had an accident in the last five years
25% of all car accidents involve drivers talking on cell phones
Nearly 50% of drivers between ages of 18 and 24 send text messages while driving
21% of fatal crashes involving 16-19 year old drivers resulted from cell phone distraction
80% of all drivers involved in motor vehicle accidents claim it's the other driver's fault

Law enforcement officers are also generally quick to remind us that the chance of a motor vehicle accident increase by 50% once the sun goes down.

Compared with other vehicle types, utility vehicles experienced the highest rollover rates in fatal crashes (33.7 percent) and in injury crashes (10.2 percent). Large trucks, pickups, and utility vehicles experienced the highest rollover rates in property-damage-only crashes (2.2 percent).

Thanks Polo for all the info. Those are helpful to remember and put into action while driving.

Seems there are more wrecks in sleepy S. Walton than my stomping ground. Speaking of hazard lights, I have found when driving in torrential rains, I am the only person with hazards on and moving quite slowly. Hazards do help other drivers see you.

Well, truck drivers and myself are generally the ones with hazards on - oooh, that reminds me, I have got to get a citizens band radio.

Y'all be safe down there and glad no one was hurt. The car that took off is very suspect - DUI, perhaps????? As was certainly not in the wrong.

I always put my hazards on too Lynnie....and Minnie gave me the suggestion to tell my 16 year old driver when she comes to a stop at a crosswalk to tap the breaks or put a blinker on, and like you said, even put the hazard lights on. Can't be too careful these days. I'll also tell my eldest daughter that too , who was in the accident.

Kat - I'm so sorry! I'm glad to hear that there were no injuries!! On another note - I had no idea you had a granddaughter! I'm happy to know she is ok as well.

Thank you Momof2kids! I think they may feel some soreness today. But yes Thank God there were no injuries.

Yes, I am lucky to have 3 grandchildren...a set of twins....one boy and one girl and a beautiful granddaughter who lives with her father in North Carolina so that she can go to school there. But she's home for summer and holidays! My eldest daughter made me a very young grandmother!!!!

I'm glad no one was seriously injured-very scary for all. Lots of people that don't aren't familiar with the area or are in a hurry to have some fun can make for a bad traffic situation for sure. Extra caution is always a good idea to keep everyone safe!

People are driving like idiots! :angry:

I think we need to start making everyone retake their driver's exam every 5 years - would be good to get bad elderly drivers off the road as well as all the pucking arsehats that make every errand a challenge to get home unscathed.

Yellow means slow down, red means stop, and tailgating me (in the GD right hand lane) doesn't make the car in front of me go faster. :angry:

Wreck

I'm glad all are OK. Pretty soon there will be an wreck in front of stinkies the way they drive in and out and around there.

Today my daughter was hit as she was at a complete stop behind a car that was stopped for someone crossing a crosswalk near Deer Park/Sea Crest. The elderly man (70) that ran into her had just arrived here with his family from Atlanta.

Thank goodness no one was hurt, but emotionally all were shaken up. She told me the impact pushed her into the car in front of her. She said that when he hit her his car then swerved around hers driving into the sand on the side of the road where he finally stopped. The car in front of her took off and did not wait for the police. I'm assuming he did not want to
talk with a police officer.

Because of the traffic on 331 it took a while to get a police officer there and he said that most everyone was working the 331 jam. Her car is a total mess with damage from one end to the other. I think she said the car of the man from Atlanta had to be towed too because of the damage.

My granddaughter was in the car and is very shaken and sick to her stomach. All she could say was that she felt sorry for the man from Atlanta because he looked so sad.

I am just so thankful that no one was hurt and there were witnesses that came to their aide.

Before that around mid-day I was returning home with my younger daughter and we were right behind a 2- 3 car crash on 98 between Publix and East Hulette. There were cars everywhere and young girls sobbing on the side of the road. It was another emotional shake-up and hopefully everyone is okay.

May we all drive with even more caution then we normally do.

Kat, I'm so glad everyone is okay - ((hugs))

As dangerous as 98 is, we have noticed we have FAR more near-misses on 30A. Fuzz and I drove from Inlet Beach to Grayton on 30A yesterday and he had to slam on brakes - not just slow down, stomp on them to the point the seat belts tightened up - three different times.

I just read this thread and am so glad to here everyone was okay in the accident. I saw the accident on Saturday as we were driving to our rental at Watersound. The damage did look bad. I marvelled at how that much damage could have happened on a relatively quiet stretch of road which has a fairly low speed limit. It just reinforces how we all must pay very strict attention to our driving at all times! My family and I had just completed a 20 hour drive through some pretty crazy traffic. While we are now in "paradise" I will still keep alert to the traffic! (I love the name Kat-- my daughter Kathryn prefers to be called "Kat" which is a perfect name for her)

Thanks everyone...I think I'm more shook up from this accident then my daughter and granddaughter. Probably just reliving last year when in January I was hit from the rear by a Semi Truck as I slowed down behind someone turning. Then....2 months later I was in an accident where a college student ran a red light and pushed me into the middle of the Blvd. by Destin Commons. I have tried to teach my children to drive with extra caution, but sometimes no matter how cautious you are....well, it just doesn't matter when others are not watching or are driving reckless.

It seems the past few years I've noticed more and more that people seem to be taking more chances crossing in front of cars, passing cars right and left, going through red lights and continuing to turn in turn lanes after the light has turned red. I see this predominately on Hwy. 98, but 30A is getting pretty scary too. Everyone is in a hurry....not just people from out of town, but people who live and work along the Emerald Coast.

1. Speeding
2. Unsafe or too-frequent lane changing
3. Not using turn signals
4. Tailgating
5. Not yielding the right of way
6. Ignoring traffic signals
7. Driving while impaired by alcohol or chemicals.

Don't forget:

1. Applying makeup
2. Yakking on the phone
3. Reading

I was almost killed on the interstate in B'Ham on the way to Seagrove 3 yrs. ago, by a man who was READING while driving. Very frightening!

I just happened to read this! So sorry to hear this but glad everyone is ok. Scary stuff.