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Now, that's what I call an accident... 60 people were injured, with 10 of them receiving life-threatening injuries, when a total of 259 cars crashed on German Autobahn A2 between Braunschweig and Hannover on sunday.

The Autobahn remained closed until today on a 30 km long section. Hospitals, paramedics and rescue services work around the clock.

The series of accidents occured when heavy rain started to pour, while the low sun was still shining underneath the rain cloud. People couldn't see a thing, while the heavy rain flooded the tarmac in a matter of seconds. Some people braked in panic, others didn't, and so the shit hit the fan.

Here's a series of pictures (click the pics for the next one): http://www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/fotos ... cle=637012

Wow.


I'd love to see how this was handled in terms of incident command and how well multiple agencies worked together. This one will definitely be a learning tool in the future. Also, a miracle that no one has died yet.

I haven't heard any specific reports on this, regarding this crash. But usually, that works rather well here in Germany. There is a central emergency center for incidents like this, that will take care of the coordination. They will order paramedics, rescue vehicles and helicopters, and alert hospitals. If some victims have special injuries, like severe burnings, they would check which hospital has special treatment facilities and direct the helicopter there.

I'm not saying that the system is flawless, but usually, it works as advertised.

Who's the chick in the pink?

Forunately, the crash(es) don't seem too severe - all the cars pictured are easily recognisable. The emergency response looks strikingly similar to the type of response we see on the M6 far too regularly (they even have the same helicopter).

And that stretch of the M40 which passes through a basin which fills with fog under the right conditions. There have been several massive multi-car accidents around there, sadly with many fatalities I think.

Man, I've seen accidents in Germany - albeit not in person in the last 20 years or so, but we used to have a saying when I was stationed there. . . .

A bad German driver is a Dead German driver . . . high speed, smallish cars, and it's all over.

What was the speed limit along the section where this happened (if applicable)?

Dunno if there was a speed limit at that section. If there was, it was probably 120 kmh / 75 mph. Some sections of the A2 have a 100 kmh / 62 mph limit, but I don't know if it happened in one of these sections.

I recall hearing about some pretty nasty wrecks along the California coastline due to fog, but I think this takes the cake.

Zak wrote:Dunno if there was a speed limit at that section. If there was, it was probably 120 kmh / 75 mph. Some sections of the A2 have a 100 kmh / 62 mph limit, but I don't know if it happened in one of these sections.

That being the case, having no deaths with so many cars involved is quite a testament to the crash safety of modern cars.

Queso wrote:That being the case, having no deaths with so many cars involved is quite a testament to the crash safety of modern cars.

Indeed. And despite of what Pep said above, even smaller cars are pretty safe these days. I remember when my mother totalled her FIAT Punto some 3 years ago. She was doing 80 kmh / 50 mph, when another crashed straight into the passenger side. Her car flipped over several times, and finally crashed into a roadside ditch. The car was a total wreck, but she was able to leave it by herself, and suffered no more than a few scratches.

According to latest statistics, our roads here in Germany are pretty safe. Road fatalities are at an all-time low. And most fatal accidents actually do not happen at Autobahn sections that are off-limits.

Wow, all those crashed cars yet the helicopter seemed undamaged.

Zak wrote:Dunno if there was a speed limit at that section. If there was, it was probably 120 kmh / 75 mph. Some sections of the A2 have a 100 kmh / 62 mph limit, but I don't know if it happened in one of these sections.

Just a guess, but I think it was 120kmh:-

But that's the other direction. You know, here in Germany, we drive on the correct side of the road...

Zak wrote:But that's the other direction. You know, here in Germany, we drive on the correct side of the road...

JLAmber wrote:Just a guess, but I think it was 120kmh:-

Oh, is that a "speed limit" sign? Here in the states you know right away the purpose of the sign because it says "SPEED LIMIT":

Queso wrote:

JLAmber wrote:Just a guess, but I think it was 120kmh:-

Oh, is that a "speed limit" sign? Here in the states you know right away the purpose of the sign because it says "SPEED LIMIT":

I wouldn't knock Germain drivers too much. They know how to really drive. A drivers license there costs a fortune and they don't take kindly to stupidity. Just a rude gesture to someone else or simply running out of gas will run you a hefty fine.

Airfoilsguy wrote:I wouldn't knock Germain drivers too much. They know how to really drive. A drivers license there costs a fortune and they don't take kindly to stupidity. Just a rude gesture to someone else or simply running out of gas will run you a hefty fine.

Drivers License comes easily for €1500 and up, that is true. And a rude gesture can cost quite a bit of money - though I would occasionally take that risk.

But there is no fine for running out of gas that I would know of.

Airfoilsguy wrote:I wouldn't knock Germain drivers too much. They know how to really drive. A drivers license there costs a fortune and they don't take kindly to stupidity. Just a rude gesture to someone else or simply running out of gas will run you a hefty fine.

Sorry if it came across as me "knocking" Germain drivers, that wasn't the intent. I looked at the pic before I asked about the speed limit and it never dawned on me that the circular sign with the red border and the "120" in the middle was a speed limit sign. I've never been to Europe so I am completely out of touch with their signage.

Again, apologies if my post came across in that way.

German or Germain?

CO777ER wrote:German or Germain?

Yes.

Hmm...that's horrible, but at least it looks as if the accident wasn't quite high speed, thank God.

As to foggy California accidents, those who have not encountered 'Tule Fog' don't understand how the visibility cuts off in less than a second.

You're driving, and all of a sudden you just can't see anything in front of you. I had the unfortunate pleasure of encountering this fog once, and it was highly unpleasant. You can't even see the offramps to get off the freeway.

Oh...and it can get so bad that parts of the valley get 'fog days', when it is so thick that school is canceled...no one can get there...

AndesSMF wrote:Hmm...that's horrible, but at least it looks as if the accident wasn't quite high speed, thank God.

As to foggy California accidents, those who have not encountered 'Tule Fog' don't understand how the visibility cuts off in less than a second.

You're driving, and all of a sudden you just can't see anything in front of you. I had the unfortunate pleasure of encountering this fog once, and it was highly unpleasant. You can't even see the offramps to get off the freeway.

Oh...and it can get so bad that parts of the valley get 'fog days', when it is so thick that school is canceled...no one can get there...

June Gloom on PCH...
Also, nobody in SoCal knows how to drive when it's raining.

CO777ER wrote:Also, nobody in SoCal knows how to drive when it's raining.

That's not a phenomenon limited to SoCal. Granted, Bermuda is a dinky little island with a very slow speed limit...but on a rainy day, look out! Our roads on a GOOD day are barely wide enough for regular traffic, but when it rains....out come the lead feet...see a puddle, speed up...

Nothing like a car going through a rather large puddle on the opposite side of you at about 60+mph....