Sadly this is also traditionally a drinking and driving weekend. If not in your town, it is in mine. The police set up check points and nab a bunch, but always, some get through.
I've never been found of driving, or riding for the matter. And I'm particularly not happy about highways. Just sitting in the passenger seat in a car on highways will often set my jaw clenching in some subconscious level of stress. I find it best in general to pass out asleep in car and luckily, I can fall asleep just like that in a moving vehicle. I guess I'm just a child that way.
This brings us to what passed in view from my window July 3rd early morning just past midnight.
To set the scene for you, I live in a condo on the 10 floor just north of a major highway in Toronto. The 401. I'm not the closest building in this complex to the highway, we're separated by another closer bigger higher building. From my condo balcony, I've got a view of that building directly in front, but to my left is a clear a view to the 401 and on the right as well again. This side also gives me a view to the CN Tower and the rest of Toronto downtown.
Not surprisingly, we were up just past midnight. My boyfriend playing video games and I was doing some busy work around the apartment. We're in midst of a condo redecoration project and we've been painting. That and the cool night air, we had the windows open, and with that, we've got quite a bit of steady traffic noise from the highway. I'd speculate that the front building never opens their windows, as it'd be really loud from the traffic sounds.
So, with all the noise, it was shocking to my ears to all of a sudden be hearing a loud screech coming from the outside getting louder towards us at high speed. It was an out of control car. Must have been mere seconds if that much between the first squeal of the tires, the sound of out of control spin and the unmistakable crash of car against metal. My heart was in my throat and I must have made some type of profane exclamation. I know I said something like "shit" the first mini-seconds I heard the first tire squeal. I was further from the balcony and when I got there with my glasses on, my boyfriend was out on the balcony examining the sight. A car was side ways against the rail on the express lanes and cars had stopped before picking up low speeds to drive by. We've got a centered view of this accident looking out on to the left of our balcony a little. It was dark and from our vantage point, there's a tree blocking a bit of the road so we can't tell if there was another car involved. We can't tell if we were looking at the front of the car or the back. Only thing you can really see was that it was a silver or grey sporty car.
It looked so bad, we called 911 to respond. We watch and wait.
Cars are not driving by on the right lane as the accident car was next to the left lane. We don't see anyone leave the car and don't see anyone approaching the car. At this point, I'm still convinced that this car had hit another and the tree blocked the view.
Before I know it, there's a toll truck pulled over on the side of the collectors lanes and the driver walks out and yells towards the accident car. No response, he whistles loudly to try to get attention. I don't think there was any because, I step into the house to get balcony shoes and when I get back, the toll truck and its driver was gone. I still see no movement from the car sideways on the highway.
My boyfriend just finish telling me that there's nothing to see and cars don't blow up like they show on movies and I see something distressing from the car. Grey smoke is starting to come out, raising from the car and away in the direction of the wind I feel blowing even as I stand on on my balcony. I see sparks of orange from what I believe is under the hood and this is trouble. The car is going up. It wasn't fast but it was much faster than you'd think. From when I start hearing the OPP car sirens and seeing the first sparks, it was enough time (what? 30 seconds?) for the car to be lit with enough flames that I know the driver (who I don't believe have left the car but I hoped had) was in big trouble.
By the time the OPP car arrives closes enough through the congestion of cars, the cop car couldn't get clothes and they didn't even try to put out the flames. The flames looked big from way up on my balcony, it must have burned hot on ground level. EMT is right behind, but could do nothing. The two vehicles sit helpless amongst the rest on the high way and I'm sure they were thinking as we were, where was the fire trucks.
A small explosion fuels the fires some more, and at this point, only minutes after the initial crash, I'm certain if any driver was in the car, he was with third degree burns if not dead. It never occurs to me until this very second, but what if there were others in the car?!?!
I go get my camera to see if I can get a closer look with my lens but do no better than regular vision as my tele-photo is packed away.
It takes no time and while we and the cops and EMT watch, the car explodes again and it's now burning so intensely that from where I stand, I can see the car skeleton. If there's anyone left in the car, they're dead for sure. It's so distressing to see.
Eventually, the fire department engines come by, must have been at least 5 minutes, and they had trouble getting through the traffic that's piled up behind this accident. They had to use the megaphone to get people to move out of the way. Once they arrived, it only takes less than a minute to douse out the fire. The car doors are pried open and I could not see if anyone was taken out. Just that the doors were open with fire fighters gathered around. First three, then six and then I think perhaps the EMT and police as well.
It didn't look good. From the way they gathered, it distinctly looked as if they had found at least one body in the car.
I don't know why it took so long for the fire engine to arrive. But I'm saddened by the fact that no one could/would stop to see if they can help.
Gary asks me if we would have stopped, and I hope that the next time, we do. I don't like what I saw that night, and if there's something to be learned from this other than perhaps not "drinking and driving", or "sleeping and driving", it's perhaps to help the next time you drive by an accident scene. To carry a fire extinguisher in your car.
I looked for the next two days for a news report and didn't seen any. It's also disheartening that a fiery crash is also not news.
7.10.2005 at 12:14 AM
|
blogger comments (0)
