January 25, 2006
Wednesday

I have been doing this for a number of years now and it still amazes me to see who walks away from vehicle crashes and who needs to be carried away. Who is injured and who escapes. Who lives and who dies. The damage to the vehicle does not necessarily dictate the injuries the occupants receive. Sometimes it is luck. To say otherwise is ignoring the obvious. Having said that however, some of the luckiest people I have observed over the years all wore seatbelts. Do you wear yours? Do your kids wear theirs?

SitNews, your article was very, very well done and very timely. What if the two young people had worn their seat belts early Saturday morning, would they have still been injured so severely? I don't know. It is so easy to stand on your side of the fence and shout your case, but here is what I do know.

The young lady in the Jeep Cherokee was wearing her seatbelt. Her car was about as badly damaged as the car early Saturday morning. We did not transport her. The occupants of the car early Saturday morning did not wear their seatbelts and ended up in Seattle. You play the odds. Are you a gambler?

It reminds me of an old story I heard in Reno about this couple arguing in a restaurant. It seems the husband was upset the wife lost $500 playing the slot machines. But you lost $3,000 playing poker, the wife protested. Yes, the husband exclaimed loudly, but I know how to gamble!

I think that is how I would characterize the people who refuse to wear their seat belts; apparently they know how to gamble.

Dave Hull
Ketchikan, AK - USA

About: Dave Hull is Chief of the North Tongass Volunteer Fire Department. He writes he's "spent many a cold rainy night along side of the road getting people out of wrecked vehicles".

Related Article & Photo:

Ketchikan: Difference between life and death can be just a click away By M.C. KAUFFMAN - A piece of fabric can make the difference between walking away from an accident, being transported to a hospital, or worse - being transported to a morgue. Do you hear that life-saving click of your seat belt before you crank up that magnificently powerful machine and head out to work, the grocery store, cruising with your pals, or perhaps a special event? - More...
January 24, 2006

 

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