Accident scene antics

MAGPIE · 21-01-2011, 09:42 PM

I have noticed a trend over the past few years of friends and relatives turning up to accident scenes after being notified via mobile phone (by someone involved) of the accident.

Back in pre mobile phone days the first anyone would usually know of an accident (involving family or friends) would be with a phone call from the hospital or Police or the dreaded knock on the door, which was well after the fact.

Now days it seems common for hysterical young females, tanked up males and concerned (but, know it all) parents to arrive on scene and hinder the emergency services efforts in extricating and caring for the patients and generally trying to keep the scene safe.

I would have thought if people had genuine concern for someone involved in an accident they would be better of meeting them at the hospital rather the seeing them dead, dying or seriously injured and trapped in a car wreck. The end result is they place themselves in possibly dangerous situation and tie up emergency personnel who have to deal with them.

Has anyone else noticed this ?

Thoughts ?

ThaFlash · 21-01-2011, 09:47 PM

i haven't noticed this, but easier said than done.

let's see how many continue watching tv after the news and say "stuff it, i will see them when they get to hospital, someone pass me another can."

i know I couldn't do it, but I wouldn't get in the way of emergency service workers either.

Jim Goose · 21-01-2011, 10:01 PM

This can be expanded to fights at parties, gate crashers , street racing etc... where people use thier mobile phones to quickly gather or scatter people from a place/ event.

There has been what i believe is an increased amount of people who ring their mates or ring a taxi to go to hospital (at least here for a while it seemed common) after an accident instead of calling for an ambulance.
(possibly because they are drunk or drugged and fear getting fined).

silicon · 21-01-2011, 10:20 PM

Yep. I was passenger in a car and had a side swipe that was not our fault. She (edited) wanted us to hang around for the boys to arrive after the phone call. Exchanged details and got out of there in a hurry.

silicon · 21-01-2011, 10:27 PM

Ok try 'Italian'. Seriously it is not derogative in my eyes though.

Jim Goose · 21-01-2011, 10:32 PM

i dont see what her "heritage" had to do with the accident?

Quote:

Ok try 'Italian'. Seriously it is not derogative in my eyes though.

**Professor Farnsworth** · 21-01-2011, 10:37 PM

keep it on track people

Sizey · 21-01-2011, 10:47 PM

In regard to the first post, I can see why people are down there showing concern and yes I have seen an upward trend of extras there after the phone call. And they seem to get there damn fast too.

It does hinder emergency services, complicate situations more and in extreme occasions sometimes causes other situations ie fights etc.

It is just shows that common sense these days is just not all that common.

prydey · 21-01-2011, 10:55 PM

so if you received a call to say a relative or close friend was involved in an accident, and the accident wasn't too far away, you'd just stay calm and just wander down the hospital????

you also mention 'dead' or 'dying' which would be a quite severe accident. it also means the emotions would be ranging right up to hysterical. to ask people to behave in a rational manner when someone is dying is asking too much.

290v · 21-01-2011, 11:04 PM

The benefit of the mobile phone helped my friend out i was a passenger in their car and was hit from the rear i got out and straight away started taking photo's of the accident and the other person it turned out that the car that hit us wasn't registered and the driver had no licence and skipped town the insurance company wanted photo's that i took to chase up the person
$8,000 damage to my friend XR insurance payed for all the repairs

Sparksy · 21-01-2011, 11:12 PM

My sister rang me to tell me she had pranged my car just after it happened.
She said she was ok.
The cops had turned up and were trying to ask her questions but she was still still making sure i was ok! and she was very sorry for stacking my car.
She said the towie would drop her off at home so i did'n even go check it out.......but she did send me some pics of the stack while she was there!! Ha

Halfmo Rocks · 21-01-2011, 11:15 PM

emotions get in the way of common sense...simple as that.
i was in an accident (as a passenger) last year, driver being my best friend (and my partner's sister). while we were pretty much fine, only minor injuries from flying glass & such...a friend in a following car called/texted a few people telling them about the prang my boyfriend turned up in rather a hurry...obviously worried about both of us, and so very nearly smashed into the back of a police car on the scene.

we all know it's a bad idea to get in the way, but emotions are powerful...they thend to over-ride common sense

BENT_8 · 21-01-2011, 11:26 PM

I've experienced it twice in as many years.
first time some twit in a late 80's celica reversed back across a T junction because he had missed his turn. I came out of the t section, looked right and accelerated only to have this idiot reverse into the left dogleg of my BA.
We get out and he is instantly on the phone to someone who turns out to be the owner of the car.
This twit was test driving it with view to purchase.
Anyway im writing down his details when i notice him looking up the road further all agitated like. Then i see two car loads of people reversing out of a driveway 200mtrs up the road and take off towards us albeit on the other side of the median strip.
I threw the twit his licence, jumped in my car and lashed it just as the two turbo, buzz box with neon paint and funny writing came screaming up.
Luckily for me the traffic was heavy and before they could hang a uturn i was gone.
Went to the local police station to report it and what had happened but was told if i made a complaint they would be able to get my details by law, needless to say i declined any further retribution...i mean action.

The second time a mate failed to give way at a roundabout to a dualcab ute full of people who write similarly to those in the first incident and t boned them in the left rear door.
Within minutes another car load rocks up, 2 of the occupants of the damaged ute flee the scene and the remaining 6 of them try to convince the attending officer that my mate had damaged every other panel on the ute.
As they were hard to understand and my teenage mate was a blubbering mess the officer asked me what happened.
I told him the story, the REAL story which he obviously agreed with after assesing the damage and sent us on our way...would love to have known how they fared.

Jason[98.EL] · 21-01-2011, 11:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAGPIE

I have noticed a trend over the past few years of friends and relatives turning up to accident scenes after being notified via mobile phone (by someone involved) of the accident.

Back in pre mobile phone days the first anyone would usually know of an accident (involving family or friends) would be with a phone call from the hospital or Police or the dreaded knock on the door, which was well after the fact.

Now days it seems common for hysterical young females, tanked up males and concerned (but, know it all) parents to arrive on scene and hinder the emergency services efforts in extricating and caring for the patients and generally trying to keep the scene safe.

I would have thought if people had genuine concern for someone involved in an accident they would be better of meeting them at the hospital rather the seeing them dead, dying or seriously injured and trapped in a car wreck. The end result is they place themselves in possibly dangerous situation and tie up emergency personnel who have to deal with them.

Has anyone else noticed this ?

Thoughts ?

yup I witnessed an accident the other day and was first on the scene

the lady in the car that got hit was on the phone to her husband before i even got to the cars and i only had to run 50 mtrs

the other guy was in a bad state and req to be taken to hospital

the ladies husband was there before the police fire and ambos got there

it is one thing i dont want to see again for a long time

Jason

ThaFlash · 21-01-2011, 11:31 PM

i guess while we are on the topic, how many people take pics of the stack before they offer help?

I don't know but i am guessing there would be a few becasue money and property is worth more than life to some people.

that might include by-standers too.

prydey · 21-01-2011, 11:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason[98.EL]

yup I witnessed an accident the other day and was first on the scene

the lady in the car that got hit was on the phone to her husband before i even got to the cars and i only had to run 50 mtrs

the other guy was in a bad state and req to be taken to hospital

the ladies husband was there before the police fire and ambos got there

it is one thing i dont want to see again for a long time

Jason

is it wrong to contact your partner if you are invovled in an accident?

geckoGT · 21-01-2011, 11:49 PM

Yes family and friends turning up at crashes is becoming more frequent, that is without doubt. In my experience most people are really good and let us do our job but you do get the odd person that gets in our way. I think it is a lot more frequent that the worst group of people for getting in our way are the tow truck drivers, absolute vultures and the way they conduct themselves is often atrocious.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThaFlash

i guess while we are on the topic, how many people take pics of the stack before they offer help?

I don't know but i am guessing there would be a few becasue money and property is worth more than life to some people.

that might include by-standers too.

In my experience this is not very frequent, most pics seem to occur just before the cars are removed. I always ask the person attempting to take the pic who they are, if they are not friend or family, they are not allowed to take the pic and get asked very politely to go away (sometimes not so politely depending on their attitude). I absolutely will not allow any pics by anyone when there is a victim within the shot, most cops and fire fighters I have come across will not either.

ThaFlash · 21-01-2011, 11:52 PM

that's actually very interesting gecko

geckoGT · 21-01-2011, 11:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason[98.EL]

yup I witnessed an accident the other day and was first on the scene

the lady in the car that got hit was on the phone to her husband before i even got to the cars and i only had to run 50 mtrs

the other guy was in a bad state and req to be taken to hospital

the ladies husband was there before the police fire and ambos got there

it is one thing i dont want to see again for a long time

Jason

This happens frequently and I do not see a problem with it at all but I hope they have called emergency services first and the spouse is the second call. Considering we frequently arrive and they are on the phone to their spouse, I assume they do call 000 first.

4Vman · 21-01-2011, 11:57 PM

Yes rapid notification is a bi product of technology.... but i would have thought genuine care and concern would have automatically meant going to where ever your loved ones were to be there for them...

Cant see a problem with that...

fmc351 · 21-01-2011, 11:57 PM

Sorry but race has an element here (at least in certain places), and I usually hate when race is dragged in. I know of two people in Sydney who had cars involved in separate accidents with Middle Eastern (read Lebanese) people. One was parked, hit by a group of clowns hooning. They get on their mobiles and before you know it, theres 20 or more people saying it was your fault, and threats, if not worse.

Id say some places are going to hell in a handbasket, but I think that would be a step up. No offence if youre Middle Eastern, most arent like that, but in certain places, it seems most there are.

Ringing family is one thing when genuine support (as in comfort) is needed, but when it becomes a street court of justice decided by who is the loudest, or most ready to stab, nah, its crossed a line into crazytown.

geckoGT · 22-01-2011, 12:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fmc351

Sorry but race has an element here (at least in certain places), and I usually hate when race is dragged in. I know of two people in Sydney who had cars involved in separate accidents with Middle Eastern (read Lebanese) people. One was parked, hit by a group of clowns hooning. They get on their mobiles and before you know it, theres 20 or more people saying it was your fault, and threats, if not worse.

Id say some places are going to hell in a handbasket, but I think that would be a step up. No offence if youre Middle Eastern, most arent like that, but in certain places, it seems most there are.

Ringing family is one thing when genuine support (as in comfort) is needed, but when it becomes a street court of justice decided by who is the loudest, or most ready to stab, nah, its crossed a line into crazytown.

i have seen instances of that but it is very rare. Interestingly I think race has little to do with it, the culprits in one episode I witnessed were anglo-saxon australian males.

XCwillo · 22-01-2011, 01:17 AM

I don't see the discussion here?

Its just people doing what they normally do, nothing wrong with it, and there are always bystanders calling paramedics first. The only people calling family are the ones involved.

geckoGT · 22-01-2011, 01:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by XCwillo

I don't see the discussion here?

Its just people doing what they normally do, nothing wrong with it, and there are always bystanders calling paramedics first. The only people calling family are the ones involved.

Agreed, that is what I see most of the time.

fmc351 · 22-01-2011, 03:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geckoGT

i have seen instances of that but it is very rare. Interestingly I think race has little to do with it, the culprits in one episode I witnessed were anglo-saxon australian males.

That would also fit race. Just not as many would have considered it to be.

MAGPIE · 22-01-2011, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 4Vman

Yes rapid notification is a bi product of technology.... but i would have thought genuine care and concern would have automatically meant going to where ever your loved ones were to be there for them...

Cant see a problem with that...

Your missing the point...

Quote:

Now days it seems common for hysterical young females, tanked up males and concerned (but, know it all) parents to arrive on scene and hinder the emergency services efforts in extricating and caring for the patients and generally trying to keep the scene safe.

I think there is everything thing wrong with that.

I'm talking about serious accident scenes here not getting tapped at a roundabout or rear ended at the lights.

Jason[98.EL] · 22-01-2011, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geckoGT

This happens frequently and I do not see a problem with it at all but I hope they have called emergency services first and the spouse is the second call. Considering we frequently arrive and they are on the phone to their spouse, I assume they do call 000 first.

I dont see the problem either!!! But no she didn't call the emergency services I called them when i saw the state the other driver was in

Quote:

Originally Posted by prydey

is it wrong to contact your partner if you are invovled in an accident?

No and i didn't say it was if I was in an accident i would first make sure all are o/k ( if I was ok ) then call who ever is needed from the emergency services then i would call my wife.

It was one of the first times i have ever been first on scene and just found it odd that is all

Jason

Barnaby · 22-01-2011, 09:01 AM

I would go strait to the scene if I got a call. After some of the stuff thats gone down here in the last few years with the ambos, I'm not that confident they would even show up!

pottery beige · 22-01-2011, 09:33 AM

years ago a couple of young blokes thought it would be fun to follow a lights blazing fire engine.... wee waa.. woo hoo.... it was all fun and exciting until the chase ended in a quiet cul de sac with three other fire engines and a very angry policemans yelling wtf you idiots get the ... out of here NOW..... they never followed a fire engines ever again.....

fmc351 · 22-01-2011, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pottery beige

years ago a couple of young blokes thought it would be fun to follow a lights blazing fire engine.... wee waa.. woo hoo.... it was all fun and exciting until the chase ended in a quiet cul de sac with three other fire engines and a very angry policemans yelling wtf you idiots get the ... out of here NOW..... they never followed a fire engines ever again.....

BEER BAR BEER BAR BEER BAR