Horrifying incident at Santa Monica farmer's market

tmp · July 16, 2003 6:30PM

An elderly man plowed his car through the two blocks of this busy farmers market on Arizona Avenue today. So far, there are 8 dead and up to 50 injured. One of the dead is 2 year old.

I can only hope that the driver had a heart attack or a seizure at the wheel- the other possibilities are too awful to contemplate- the news services here are raising every one except for the terrorism aspect.

The story

fellowship · July 16, 2003 7:09PM

Very sad

Fellowship

vandewaals · July 16, 2003 7:09PM

I just saw this story...terrible terrible news.

It seems to me that it's more or less a case of someone who was too old to be driving...as harsh as that may sound. I just heard on NPR that he tested clean for alcohol.

Older people value their independence...and I respect that. But if this turns out to be a case of someone who should NOT be operating a car, then all I can say is that we need to rethink how we license people.

scott · July 16, 2003 7:13PM

The exact same thing happened in to Chicago though not as deadly. Old guy got confused or whatever and turned his car down the lakefront bike path going about 30 or 40. "Only" one person killed. No criminal charges.

\

This type of thing happens a lot. Just not as many people killed as this one.

aquafire · July 16, 2003 7:32PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Scott

The exact same thing happened in to Chicago though not as deadly. Old guy got confused or whatever and turned his car down the lakefront bike path going about 30 or 40. "Only" one person killed. No criminal charges.\

This type of thing happens a lot. Just not as many people killed as this one.

Very sad...heard it on the radio.

Thing is, It can happen when you least expect it, minding your own business..and some idiot decides to speed thru an intersection...wham..

( I speak from personal experience )

eugene · July 16, 2003 8:39PM

Drag. brakes. on. cars. for. old. people.

wrong robot · July 16, 2003 8:44PM

Such sad news.

moogs · July 16, 2003 8:45PM

Hell this happens in south Florida almost every year -- seems like some old driver is always running amok over a sidewalk or park bench. No one wants to be told they're "too old to drive", but there should be some sort of mandatory yearly renewal [test] once you get past 70 IMO.

jeremiah rich · July 16, 2003 8:58PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Moogs

Hell this happens in south Florida almost every year -- seems like some old driver is always running amok over a sidewalk or park bench. No one wants to be told they're "too old to drive", but there should be some sort of mandatory yearly renewal [test] once you get past 70 IMO.

In Indiana there is some sort of law for that. My grandpa who is 80 this last year had to take what I *think* is a test for every 10 years for over the age of 60. But don't quote me on this, I am not sure of the specifics or if that is the length of time it is. Anyways, very very sad.

eugene · July 16, 2003 10:52PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jeremiah Rich

In Indiana there is some sort of law for that. My grandpa who is 80 this last year had to take what I *think* is a test for every 10 years for over the age of 60. But don't quote me on this, I am not sure of the specifics or if that is the length of time it is. Anyways, very very sad.

None of these tests are of foolproof of course. Even if you had a test every year, it's not always going to catch the rapid deterioration of a geriatric person's motor skills or situational awareness. Lots of people mistakenly step on the gas instead of the brakes too. Some teen chick put a big dent in the local train station here for the same reason. Another common and sometimes catastrophic mistake might be forgetting to take your car out of reverse or drive when you mean to go the other way...

burningwheel · July 16, 2003 11:13PM

i heard that he thought he hit the brakes but hit the accelerator instead

old people should realize at some point that they're just too old to drive, and stop driving

/mandolux/ · July 17, 2003 1:35AM

man - i have been there and it puts a new meaning. What a horrible and tragic thing.

drewprops · July 17, 2003 5:34AM

I've been in the car when my Dad (in his 70's) made a bad split-second driving decision and turned into a lane from opposing traffic that he'd thought was his turnoff. When he realized that he'd turned into the wrong lane there was a moment where I could tell he was really confused about where he was, then he powered up and over the median and back into the correct lane. We were lucky that we were in one of those rare no-traffic moments or it would have been really, really bad. Scared everybody to death and he didn't drive for a week or so after that.

The Santa Monica incident is a tragedy all around, from the victims and their families to the old man and his family.

power apple · July 17, 2003 5:58AM

This is a horrible tragedy! So sad.

My sister lives in Los Angeles and her office is very close to the market. She was going to eat lunch there and was on her way walking. Then right before she arrived at the market, she desided to stop at some shop before eating lunch. That was not planned. Two minutes later (while she was in that shop) the accident happened! She would have been right there where he hit!...two minutes! I'm a little shocked by the thought.

burningwheel · July 17, 2003 9:49AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Power Apple

This is a horrible tragedy! So sad.

My sister lives in Los Angeles and her office is very close to the market. She was going to eat lunch there and was on her way walking. Then right before she arrived at the market, she desided to stop at some shop before eating lunch. That was not planned. Two minutes later (while she was in that shop) the accident happened! She would have been right there where he hit!...two minutes! I'm a little shocked by the thought.

wow! glad she wasn't there at the time

gizzmonic · July 17, 2003 1:53PM

There was some traction in Florida to make yearly driving tests mandatory for everyone over 65. The main roadblock here is the old people VOTE. They don't have anything better to do, and you can bet the AARP will rain down hellfire on any politician who introduces a law that could take away old people's cars.

inactionman · July 17, 2003 2:40PM

This should never have happened. The elderly should not be allowed to drive. There is mandatory yearly tests in Canada for the decrepit but it has yet to stop my barely living grandfather from continually passing the test and continually running in to things (street light, mail boxes, parked cars).

Doctors can revoke your licence if your epileptic because there is the risk that you could have a seizure behind the wheel yet senile people on the verge of death are still allowed to tool around town in the LeSabre's despite the fact that this shite keeps happening.

eugene · July 17, 2003 7:16PM

Quote:

Originally posted by InactionMan

This should never have happened. The elderly should not be allowed to drive. There is mandatory yearly tests in Canada for the decrepit but it has yet to stop my barely living grandfather from continually passing the test and continually running in to things (street light, mail boxes, parked cars).

Doctors can revoke your licence if your epileptic because there is the risk that you could have a seizure behind the wheel yet senile people on the verge of death are still allowed to tool around town in the LeSabre's despite the fact that this shite keeps happening.

This could still happen to young people or those without medical conditions. Drastic preemptive measures against the elderly aren't going to stop drunk drivers or people who fall asleep at the wheel. I have a 90 year old grandfather who is sharp both physically and mentally. He could have a stroke or heart attack just like that, but so could a 40 year old man who eats a lot of fast food.

moogs · July 17, 2003 7:50PM

Look, some freak accident could be caused by any one of us. That's not the point. The point is, once we get past a certain age, we are much more likely to cause one of these accidents because our vision, reflexes and decision-making tend to slide quite a bit.

[I say that age is approximately 70. Everyone is different of course but you have to draw a line in the sand somewhere. I say 70 is reasonable. I would submit my own parents should do it, and they're indeed over 70 though very sharp mentally and generally healthy.]

It should be mandatory in all 50: one in-vehicle, off-road test every 12 months. No pass, no license. [If AARP doesn't like it, they can take a flying leap. Screw them] and every other group that lobbies for the sake of lobbying rather than for the sake of public good.

eugene · July 17, 2003 8:07PM

Moogs, my whole point is the frequency of the test doesn't change much at all.

1) DMV in-car tests are very basic. They'd have to be totally reimplemented.

2) The 1 year gap still allows a large portion of tested drivers to fall through in between.

3) The lack of a driver's license doesn't necessarily prevent one from getting behind the wheel.

It'll help a little, but this kind of stuff will still happen.

scott · July 17, 2003 8:57PM

You just know this old guy is going to get off.

Infant 10th fatality in farmers' market crash

Quote:

SANTA MONICA, California (CNN) -- A 7-month-old boy Thursday died from injuries suffered Wednesday when an 86-year-old man drove his car through a crowded farmers' market in Santa Monica, California.

The boy was the 10th fatality. More than 50 people were injured when Russell Weller drove his car through the pedestrians-only, three-block stretch crowded with shoppers, police said. Weller may face manslaughter charges, police said Thursday.

If this guy's advanced age still affords him the privilege to drive then it also comes with the full responsibility and consequences of the law. I want to see him in jail.

Horrifying incident at Santa Monica farmer's market

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