Tom L
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Tom
- Joined
- Nov 5, 2021
- Threads
- 7
- Messages
- 391
- Reaction score
- 418
- Location
- Chippewa Falls, WI
- Vehicles
- 2018 Honda Clarity
- Occupation
- Retired
?Ask and you shall receive
The first time a car ran away in the 25 years we've lived here was on Halloween not long after we bought our house. A car popped out of gear and slowly made its way into the planting strip in front of our house where it nestled up against the house and didn't even crack the stucco. (The parking brake was engaged, otherwise we'd likely have needed a new front porch.) Amazingly we only needed to replace one plant!
This was one of the more destructive times a car ran away. The driver lost control of the car in reverse, ran over (and took out) a tree in front of the blue house, took out the railings in front of the gray house, and then took out the metal railings of the condo on the left. The concrete steps are what finally stopped the car's terror campaign. Luckily no one was hurt. (The car is being winched up by a cable to get to the waiting tow truck.)
Here is the aftermath of the second time the tree in front of our house (the peach colored one) was hit hard. On this occasion the tree stopped the car. On the first occasion (no photos sadly), the car bounced off the street and ultimately came to a stop in the intersection below. Luckily the tree is still doing fine.
Other notable excitement (sadly no photos):
All of the above happened on our block. Amazingly no one was hurt in any of the accidents, but there was a number of fairly close calls. Needless to say there's been much other similar activity throughout the city's steep streets...
- A neighbor was being dropped off in the driveway of the house above her house; the driver hit the gas instead of the brake and the car took off down the sidewalk steps and ultimately came to a rest up inside a small tree (nor ours). Getting that thing towed out of there was......interesting. To add to the excitement, my brand new Volvo XC60 was parked just below said tree. Happily it was unscathed and even better, no one was hurt.
- After loading the kids in the car and pulling onto the street a woman realized she left something in the house. She ran in only to return to the street to see her car screaming down the hill with her two terrified children inside. After hitting numerous cars, the car came to a rest a couple blocks down the hill. Luckily no one was hurt!
- A load of lumber was being delivered a on a flat bed truck, the driver of which stupidly came up the hill. As he raised the bed of the truck to offload the wood, the bands holding the load together broke and the entire load slid down the street until it stopped at the intersection below. This happened immediately in front of our house. (My wife saw it - I was at work at the time.) Luckily no one was walking up the hill on the street at the time! No one was hurt.
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