When we are driving on the highway, we know we might face certain dangers. For example, because vehicles are traveling faster, accidents suffered are more likely to involve serious or fatal injuries. Unfortunately, there are also accidents that are caused by things that are completely beyond our control. For example, if we take good care of our vehicles and bring them in for regular maintenance checks, we would not expect a bad tire to cause a fatal accident.
But that is exactly what happened to one family. A woman, her mother and her grandmother all died in the same car accident on an interstate highway on Aug. 21. All three were members of a New York family returning from vacation.
The sole vehicle involved was a 2000 Ford Expedition car. The 22-year-old female driver apparently lost control of the vehicle following the unexpected blow out of a tire on the car’s rear right side. Following that, the SUV reportedly turned over a number of times on the highway.
The driver suffered serious injuries resulting in her death. Her 46-year-old mother and her 71-year-old grandmother, both of whom were passengers in the vehicle, also suffered fatal injuries.
Authorities reported that neither the mother nor the grandmother were wearing their seat belts, causing both of them to be flung from the car during the accident. Five other members of the family also present in the car suffered less serious injuries, for which they were treated at a local hospital.
Source: Reuters, “Three generations of family die in car crash,” Colleen Jenkins, Aug. 21, 2011