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Randy Cassingham's BlogHistorical Details and Author's Notes from This is True® - the First For-Profit E-mail Publication (and Still Going Strong). |
Got Wheels?
I have a photo of the guy in the wheelchair, still stuck in the truck's grille, from the story in this week's issue. But first, the story:
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Got Wheels?
"You are not going to believe this," said a 911 caller to the Michigan State Police, reporting that "there is a semi pushing a guy in a wheelchair on Red Arrow Highway" in Paw Paw, Mich. Sure enough, responding troopers found that a truck driver had hit a man in a wheelchair; the handles on his chair got stuck in his front grille. The driver, completely unaware of the man stuck to the front of his truck, drove about two miles at up to 50 mph before reaching his destination. Ben Carpenter, 21, who was seat-belted to his chair, was not only not injured, he found the experience downright fun. "It was like a ride at a fair," Carpenter said later. (South Bend Tribune) ...Except he didn't have to wait in line for half an hour.
And here's the shot, courtesy of the Michigan State Police:
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Regarding whether the motor would have burned out, it looks like the drive wheels of the chair were lifted off the ground by an inch or two.
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Hard to see in the photo. However, his dad said the only real damage to the chair was that most of the rubber was warn off the wheels, so it was touching down at least some of the time. -rc
Posted by: Michael in Texas | June 18, 2007 9:17 PM
If you will notice, this is not the usual standard wheelchair, like the ones at hospitals, and it is constructed for long time heavy use. This type chair is a big buck item, intended to last for years with very little maintenance. While I am sure the young man would not knowingly put himself in this situation, stranger things have happened. If the driver of the big rig was looking the other way when the young man entered the crosswalk, it is very likely the driver could not see him as the hood of the truck appears to be a foot and a half higher then the top of the young man's head. Seems very feasible to me.
Posted by: Andrita in California | June 19, 2007 3:10 AM
I have a friend who I sometimes pick up and haul around along with her electric wheelchair (much like the one in the photo only right hand drive). And normally the back is tilted a bit back, so it is very possible that when the truck hit him the back wheels (which are the drive wheels) were lifted off the surface of the road. Else there is no way it could do 50 MPH or even 20 for that matter. Power off it won't even slide in the back of my mini-van if I stand on the brakes unless I release the clutches.
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I don't think the best wheelchair brakes in the world would do much to slow down a truck that big. -rc
Posted by: John in Detroit | June 19, 2007 6:35 AM