Trailer comes unhitched, kills 1.

drmopar wrote:
Was this a Trailer? The news reports a camper came off the truck and landed on top of the car. Not a Run away Trailer. Hard to tell from the photos.Very sad.

Definitely a trailer

Puma

Prayers for the family's terrible loss. He was so young too. I guess the Hwy. Patrol will figure the problem with the trailer coming unhooked. Goes to show that you never know when the clock will run out.

dodge guy wrote:
Mechanical failure. They said no one was at fault. Well someone will be! I sure hope it wasn't one of those weak A frames or 5th wheel pin box that broke. Unfortunately we will probably never know what caused it. And it is very sad for the family.

I was thinking the same thing. I know little about 5th wheel failures, but, over the years I have seen several trailers when the A frame snapped at the front of the box, and the trailer plowed itself to a stop.

Well, I just had a scary incident on my last trip last week. Hitched up trailer on a Saturday, set off on a Monday,125 miles to our destination. Un hitched and had a great night. Next morning went into the bed of the PU to get some dog food, stepped up on my hitch and accidentally nudges the hitch ball,,IT RATTLED! Yeah it was loose!
I torqued it at home,, Not scientifically but I ran it down with my 3/4" air gun rated at 200 psi torque! Then I put a cheater bar (36"_ on a 1" drive socket), Got another 1/4 of turn on it.
Been good for three years so far with this truck!
If not checked this could have been a disaster! I did check my E trailer brake and it pulled heavy amps, so I assumed its working! This looks like it took place on a two lane road,, Not sure of the speed, but with the weight and forces given, I can see it taking a good distance to stop a run away trailer, and if the brakes on one side grabbed more than the other, I can see it veering off in one direction! I just hope my chains do some good!!

valhalla360 wrote:

TNGW1500SE wrote:

My boat trailer had hydraulic brakes and there was a small safety cable that applied the brakes if the trailer came loose. On my TT I had electric brakes. If the trailer came loose, no brakes would be applied. Looks like there could be some kind of system that applied the brakes if the trailer came loose.

Trains apply the brakes by default. The air holds the brakes "open". If an air line blows, the brakes are applied. Trailers are the other way around. Might be something to learn from trains.

Still wouldn't prevent all deaths but seems reasonable to investigate.

It's pretty much standard on TT to have an emergency brake system (for a few decades). If the rig separates a separate small cable pulls a pin and the battery on the TT energizes the brakes.

Given your level of concern over this issue, I strongly suggest you get an RV tech out to show you how yours works or install one if it isn't present.

It's been a few years since I had the TT but I don't remember a break away cable and even if there was that is still depending on the batteries being charged. Could be a better design I'd think.

Now I'm in a class A. I installed a tire monitoring system and replace tires at 6 years of age. I check all my lights and brakes regularly and inspect all suspension components. I have a checklist we go over before the RV moves and check it off EVERY time.

Hey, I'm not saying that something freaky might have happened to cause this accident but you've seen the people towing 10K pounds with a old beat up truck. You've met the driver, who is just starting out who hasn't got a clue other than where the key goes. The guy who can't back into the campsite. People should really have to pass a test to drive (or tow) RV's. No matter what the size is.

Mechanical failure. They said no one was at fault. Well someone will be! I sure hope it wasn't one of those weak A frames or 5th wheel pin box that broke. Unfortunately we will probably never know what caused it. And it is very sad for the family.

drmopar wrote:
Was this a Trailer? The news reports a camper came off the truck and landed on top of the car. Not a Run away Trailer. Hard to tell from the photos.Very sad.

Definitely a trailer or 5th wheel. I could determine which for sure.

One of the pictures shows the underside of the trailer and two trailer axles can be seen.

Was this a Trailer? The news reports a camper came off the truck and landed on top of the car. Not a Run away Trailer. Hard to tell from the photos.Very sad.

TNGW1500SE wrote:

My boat trailer had hydraulic brakes and there was a small safety cable that applied the brakes if the trailer came loose. On my TT I had electric brakes. If the trailer came loose, no brakes would be applied. Looks like there could be some kind of system that applied the brakes if the trailer came loose.

Trains apply the brakes by default. The air holds the brakes "open". If an air line blows, the brakes are applied. Trailers are the other way around. Might be something to learn from trains.

Still wouldn't prevent all deaths but seems reasonable to investigate.

It's pretty much standard on TT to have an emergency brake system (for a few decades). If the rig separates a separate small cable pulls a pin and the battery on the TT energizes the brakes.

Given your level of concern over this issue, I strongly suggest you get an RV tech out to show you how yours works or install one if it isn't present.

TNGW1500SE wrote:
I'd like to know more. Were there safety chains on the trailer?

My boat trailer had hydraulic brakes and there was a small safety cable that applied the brakes if the trailer came loose. On my TT I had electric brakes. If the trailer came loose, no brakes would be applied. Looks like there could be some kind of system that applied the brakes if the trailer came loose.

Trains apply the brakes by default. The air holds the brakes "open". If an air line blows, the brakes are applied. Trailers are the other way around. Might be something to learn from trains.

Still wouldn't prevent all deaths but seems reasonable to investigate.

I always wonder why there's not trailer & hitch inspections required but here in Tennessee there's not even vehicle inspections. If it runs, you can drive it. Yearly vehicle inspections should be mandatory everywhere. There's people diving cars with bad tires, no brakes and ball joints ready to break. The only thing protecting you from them is a yellow line.

There were many safety features that failed or neglected to get to this result.