After looking at the pics, I have to say I am not too impressed with the construction of the bank awning itself. I know them Dodges are strong, but it should have taken more of an impact than that to bring it down.
Had another vehicle been under there, it would have been much worse than it already was. Thank goodness no one was hurt.
* This post was
edited 07/13/08 09:53am by surveyorjp *
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lesmore49 wrote: Unfortunately professional, commercial drivers also hit bridges, etc., that are low. Sometimes people just forget they have a large trailer behind them.
I saw the truck cab being crushed,the frame appeared to cave in, can't imagine the driver and if there were passengers walked away unscathed.
Amen to that!!! i watched a semi truck driver talking on the phone, while crossing 2 lanes of traffic while making a turn(with cars coming in fast toward him) and not cutting it enough to make the turn. Idiot stopped all traffic until he could back up and try again.....ALL the while he was talking on the phone!!!
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Next time you are on the interstate, take a look at the overpasses and the scars left from strikes by trucks. I was heading to work one morning from Orange Park to NAS Mayport heading through Jacksonville when a dump truck towing a backhoe tried unsuccessfully to fit under a well marked overpass, the backhoe section of the tractor did not make it, tearing the tractor from the trailer and falling on top of the car directly behind it, killing the woman inside. There was nothing I could do to save her, terrible waste of life. Nitwit driver of the truck just stood there with his hands in his pockets. All that hype about professional truck drivers on our highways, I see very few that act the part. Driver of the Dodge mighty lucky, notice the hitched stayed latched up.
Capt Skup
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After looking at the pics, I have to say I am not too impressed with the construction of the bank awning itself. I know them Dodges are strong, but it should have taken more of an impact than that to bring it down.
.
Awnings / roofs such as that over gas pumps and drive-throughs are VERY lightweight... they are just strong enough to keep rain off and provide some shade, that is all. They are not built to survive anything like being hit by a truck / camper.
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The strength of light duty trucks roofs have been questioned in the past. I think NHTSA is planning tests of pickups to address this issue. I am curious as to the weight of the roof, force of impact. Damn lucky for the driver and passenger, the roof of the truck looks like it completely cave in, cab structure collapsed, even bending the frame. The report will be interesting reading.
After looking at the pics, I have to say I am not too impressed with the construction of the bank awning itself. I know them Dodges are strong, but it should have taken more of an impact than that to bring it down.
.
Awnings / roofs such as that over gas pumps and drive-throughs are VERY lightweight... they are just strong enough to keep rain off and provide some shade, that is all. They are not built to survive anything like being hit by a truck / camper.
No I have to disagree. That awning was VERY poorly constructed. It was a death trap waiting to fall on someone even during a windstorm.
A fiberglass 5th wheel camper should have not been able to bring it down that easily. Heck, it looked to me like an even smaller car could have easily toppled that poorly constructed awning. It was too much weight on top of to few supports that were poorly anchored.
Capt Skup wrote: The strength of light duty trucks roofs have been questioned in the past. I think NHTSA is planning tests of pickups to address this issue. I am curious as to the weight of the roof, force of impact. Damn lucky for the driver and passenger, the roof of the truck looks like it completely cave in, cab structure collapsed, even bending the frame. The report will be interesting reading.
I guess the mighty Ford would have fared better?
If you look carefully at the pics, the roof that fell is huge compared to the truck and trailer. It lacked proper support however and came crashing down very easily. Even a roll cage would have had trouble keeping that much weight from smashing it.
* This post was
edited 07/11/08 09:20am by surveyorjp *
Now where did I say that? I said that for years cab structural integrity of pickups and SUVs have been questioned. Due to high rate of rollover and roof failure, the NHTSA has been petitioned to include roof structure strength as part of their testing. Without knowing the weight of the canopy structure, I do not know of any vehicle, save a armoured vehicle would have survived this impact. I am curious as to why the driver was in such a rush.
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but it should have taken more of an impact than that to bring it down.
