Tragedy involving RV, probably caused by RV.

[kcmoedoe]

The newspaper article is not yet online, but according to the Livingston, Montana Enterprise's Thursday edition, the driver of a Class C RV was killed on highway 89 several miles north of Yellowstone National Park. The driver was struck by a piece of an equalizer hitch, likely from another RV, that penetrated the windshield and striking and killing the driver. The highway patrol went on to say it was doubtful the piece was laying on the highway, since that would have made it highly unlikely that it would be able to enter the windshield. This would mean it fell off of an RV traveling that section of highway (likely southbound towards Yellowstone, around 9 AM on 7/15/2014. The highway patrol is investigating the incident and an autopsy is pending.
****personal comment***** There is a reason for the safety pins on those hitch components. It is likely that someone either didn't want to take the 30 seconds to install them, didn't think it was that big a deal so it slipped their mind, or didn't want to pay the $5.00 to replace a lost one and now someone is dead. Pay attention to what you are doing. And if you know someone who lost a part of their hitch in that location, please do the right thing and contact the authorities.

[camperkilgore]

Regardless of why or how this accident happened, this is a good reminder for us to check and double check everything that might vibrate loose from our rigs.

I had two bicycles fall off the rack and onto the interstate. Luckily no one hit them and no injuries or damage resulted. It sure woke me up to the hazards though.

[mpierce]

I met a pickup pulling a trailer with a Bobcat type loader on it two days ago. Just before I met him, I saw something fly out. It came over into my lane.

It was the front door, frame with two panes of glass in it. I dodged to the shoulder, managing to miss the frame, but hit broken glass from it.

If the wind had been stronger, and I had been two seconds ahead of where I was, that sucker could have come thru my windshield! I imagine he had pulled that hundreds of times without a problem.

He kept going. I do not believe he even knew what happened. Crud happens. Be prepared.

[D___M]

Bird Freak wrote:
Terrible thing to happen but the Op sure is assuming a lot as to why.

X2 The world is an imperfect place. Things just happen for no reason and it's no one's fault.

[K3WE]

When I read this last night, I felt the OP had some sort of pet peeve about clips and made a giant and likely flawed leap to a conclusion that someone left out a locking clip and killed someone...

Upon further thought, perhaps the message needs to be that we have a whole bunch of heavy metal hardware in our equalizer hitches and that it's probably worthwhile to pause and double check that everything is secure and sound.

Back to the incident- maybe the part owner did nothing wrong, maybe he negligently skipped a step, or maybe he followed the rules, but missed something insidious- a rusted bracket or bolt?...that seemed ok but in hindsight, maybe should have been addressed and might have prevented this tragedy?

[Bucky_Badger]

dodge guy wrote:
Although this is a bit different, it is still the same.

2X4 through windshield! It happens that fast!!!

Don`t follow too close! and lets not start on how the guy shouldn`t have been recording while driving!

Holy*%&# That made me jump out of my chair

[dodge_guy]

Although this is a bit different, it is still the same.

2X4 through windshield! It happens that fast!!!

Don`t follow too close! and lets not start on how the guy shouldn`t have been recording while driving!

[marcsbigfoot20b]

That is sad for the driver.
Sometimes parts just fail, sometimes it is neglect or even ignorance.

On my last trip back from Mexico one of my TT leaf springs failed and both 6" ends of the second leaf snapped off.

Had it replaced in a small town on the way home. FF to a week later when all 4 new springs came to my house, I installed them. I noticed that one or both broken off pieces hit the ground and were then flung up into the bottom of the trailer hitting metal and making a big dent and scrape. Had someone been following too close they could have gotten some flying metal.
It will make me keep a little more distance from now on.

[atreis]

"Equalizing" is not necessarily "Equilizer" either... Could have been a part from another type of WD hitch. Really can't tell much of anything from the information given thus far. Very tragic bad luck though.

[Ron3rd]

Hard to say if the mystery part was kicked up off the road or thrown from an overpass (which happens from time to time). Tragedy for sure.

[wa8yxm]

Re safety pins.. I have lost a safety pin while towing, and had another one almost vanish on me.. NOT the result of vandals in either case as the pins were installed just before starting moving and vandals would have been flattened had they messed with those pins.

[mpierce]

mich800 wrote:
Here are some quotes from the newspaper article.

"The object that went through the windshield has been identified as some type of a bracket for an equalizing hitch on a trailer, he said."

"No one knows which vehicle the component fell from, and no one saw it actually fall, but it’s unlikely the object would have reached the windshield if it had just been sitting on the road, Nilan said."

IF this is correct, "bracket", then most likely a failure. Most "brackets" are attached, more or less permanently, to the trailer hitch.

But, still so vague as to not know for sure.

[Atlee]

removed

[mich800]

Here are some quotes from the newspaper article.

"The object that went through the windshield has been identified as some type of a bracket for an equalizing hitch on a trailer, he said."

"No one knows which vehicle the component fell from, and no one saw it actually fall, but it’s unlikely the object would have reached the windshield if it had just been sitting on the road, Nilan said."

[Dennis_M_M]

Here is a link to an article no mention of what "the object" was.

Anything can get kicked up off the road surface and become a deadly missile. Sad.