Blog of a discontent conforming noncomformist

More reason why hands-free devices are not the answer

I got this article from aXcess News. The woman in the article apparently thought that having a hands-free cell phone would keep her safe. As I have said before, this is not the case. She was so distracted by the conversation that she lost control of her SUV and slid off a bridge.

Hopefully, she will learn from this mistake. The story goes as follows:

March 28, 2005 (AXcess News) Portland - A woman was shocked but unhurt after her SUV plunged off a bridge, falling 60 feet into a river, then sinking another 55 feet to the bottom.

Melissa Borgaard was quoted in the Oregonian paper following the accident as saying, "You're in a car going off a bridge - you think you're done."

Borgaard had been driving across a rain-soaked bridge near downtown Portland, distracted by her conversation on a hands-free cell phone, when her sport utility vehicle skidded out of control and broke through a guardrail, plunging into the Willamette River Saturday.

She did not recall much though she apparently was not wearing her seatbelt which probably saved her life as she swam through the broken windshield to the surface.

Witnesses said Borgaard floated on her back when she surfaced to cheers from onlookers who say her SUV plunge into the river. Several onlookers had called 911 on their cell phones as authorities arrived at the scene within minutes.

Borgaard, 31, was released from the hospital the next day with only minor cuts and bruises. Her SUV still lies on the bottom of the Willamette River. No word on the whereabouts of her cell phone though.

It is fortunate that the woman in this article lived to learn from her mistake. Too many others have not. The story that follows is from Drive Now, Chat Later. It involves a double tragedy for a family.

A 28-year-old Indianapolis man was talking on his cell phone while driving and ran through a stop sign. A dump truck broad- sided his car, killing him instantly. Further police investigation showed that he was talking to the manager of a funeral home to make arrangements for his brother who had been killed the day before while he was driving and talking on his cell phone. The brother had run through a traffic light and a city bus broad sided him.

Two brothers dead, two deaths that did not need to happen. When will people ever learn?

posted by speeddemon0117 @ 12:38 AM