Motorway shut as 'several people' die in 27-vehicle crash - Polidicks

[IMG]http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/56494000/jpg/_56494445_m5.jpg[/IMG] [B][U]Confirmed: 7 dead, 51 injured, 34 vehicles involved [/U][/B] [B] "Several" people were killed and up to 35 injured in a 27-vehicle crash on the M5 near Taunton, Somerset, police say.[/B] [I]Officers said the crash, which happened close to junction 25 northbound at about 20:30 GMT on Friday, led to "one massive fireball" at the scene.[/I] [I]Emergency crews said the cause of the crash was not clear, but there had been reports of heavy rain and fog.[/I] [I]The M5 is currently shut northbound between junctions 25 and 24, and southbound between junctions 23 and 25. Some drivers reported delays of up to five-and-a-half hours and motorists have been urged to avoid the area. [/I] [I]Assistant Chief Constable Anthony Bangham, of Avon and Somerset Police, said "several people" had died but he could not be specific about numbers at this stage.[/I] [I]He said: "The incident was very, very challenging and on arrival crews were faced with literally one massive fireball.[/I] This is near to where i live, truly horrible... More at the [URL="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-15603124"]source[/URL] [B][U] NEW[/U][/B] [release][B]M6 motorway 11-vehicles crash leaves six injured[/B] Six people have been injured in a crash involving 11 vehicles on the M6 motorway in Lancashire. Police said the crash involved seven cars and four lorries and happened close to junction 29, near Leyland, south of Preston, at about 01:40 GMT. One person was trapped in a lorry and had to be released by firefighters. Police said none of the injuries was life-threatening. The motorway was reopened on both carriageways just after 08:45 GMT. The cause of the crash, on the northbound carriageway, is not known. The southbound side of the motorway was closed as it was used to remove casualties. Police said the person rescued from the lorry was taken to Royal Preston Hospital for treatment while the other five people hurt went to Wigan Infirmary. On Friday night seven people were killed and more than 50 injured in a crash on the M5 in Somerset. [url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-15610558]Source is BBC News[/url] [/release] Seems like its the apocalypse for cars...

That's really shitty, people need to start learning to drive at an appropriate speed for the weather. If the highway's speed is 110kph and it's raining and foggy, you definitely shouldn't be going 110 If the car in front brakes and you know you wouldn't have enough time to stop without hitting them you're either going to fast or you're too close

Wow this is terrible, I feel sorry mostly for the people who were driving responsibly who were injured/killed in this.

[QUOTE=Zeke129;33130337]That's really shitty, people need to start learning to drive at an appropriate speed for the weather. If the highway's speed is 110kph and it's raining and foggy, you definitely shouldn't be going 110 If the car in front brakes and you know you wouldn't have enough time to stop without hitting them you're either going to fast or you're too close[/QUOTE] Going 110 on a highway is fine as long as you're aware of the road and others. The big issue I've found is people never keeping an appropriate distance between themselves and the car in front, which is only exacerbated by wet conditions.

[QUOTE=Contag;33130368]Going 110 on a highway is fine as long as you're aware of the road and others. The big issue I've found is people never keeping an appropriate distance between themselves and the car in front, which is only exacerbated by wet conditions.[/QUOTE]Being slow can sometimes cause an accident aswell.

[QUOTE=Zeke129;33130337]That's really shitty, people need to start learning to drive at an appropriate speed for the weather. If the highway's speed is 110kph and it's raining and foggy, you definitely shouldn't be going 110 If the car in front brakes and you know you wouldn't have enough time to stop without hitting them you're either going to fast or you're too close[/QUOTE] I don't even see where you read that the crash was a result of somebody going too fast.

[QUOTE=madmax678;33130379]Being slow can sometimes cause an accident aswell.[/QUOTE] Being too slow is never the sole causative factor in an accident, though. It increases the probability of an accident, but only because others are impatient etc. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=Valdor;33130396]I don't even see where you read that the crash was a result of somebody going too fast.[/QUOTE] I find it pretty hard to see a [B]27 vehicle crash[/B] occurring with cars that are driving at appropriate speeds with adequate braking distances occurring.

[QUOTE=Contag;33130398]Being too slow is never the sole causative factor in an accident, though. It increases the probability of an accident, but only because others are impatient etc. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] I find it pretty hard to see a [B]27 vehicle crash[/B] occurring with cars that are driving at appropriate speeds with adequate braking distances occurring.[/QUOTE] I would assume after a few cars piling up things could just spin out of control. Sure if everybody had instant reactions there would have been less cars involved, but you might as well pretend we live in a perfect world. [editline]4th November 2011[/editline] Not everybody is a good driver, regardless of the speed they are going.

[QUOTE=Contag;33130368]Going 110 on a highway is fine[/QUOTE] Are you kidding me? Some cars struggle past 100kph already. The speed limit on a lot of highways is 90-100kph, and I really don't think there's even a need to go faster. It's not going to save you more then 10-20 minutes.

[QUOTE=madmax678;33130379]Being slow can sometimes cause an accident aswell.[/QUOTE]Yeah, it can, but 99% of the time when people complain about this (after getting in an accident) they weren't paying attention. I have never, ever been in a wreck with another car because I drive safely. I drive fast, but I'm never fucking around texting, fooling with the radio, eating, masturbating, reading or changing my goddamn clothes. (I have seen all of these, both while a passenger and while in another car) If you aren't watching what's around you, then you're incapable of responding to possible dangers. This kills a LOT of people, and it's easy to fix and prevent.

My girlfriend came back from her holiday today and she passed the accident area about 5 fucking minutes before it happened. Jesus Christ I'm glad she wasn't involved in it.

[QUOTE=ZestyLemons;33130531]Are you kidding me? Some cars struggle past 100kph already. The speed limit on a lot of highways is 90-100kph, and I really don't think there's even a need to go faster. It's not going to save you more then 10-20 minutes.[/QUOTE] 10-20 minutes is a good chunk of time

[QUOTE=ZestyLemons;33130531]Are you kidding me? Some cars struggle past 100kph already. The speed limit on a lot of highways is 90-100kph, and I really don't think there's even a need to go faster. It's not going to save you more then 10-20 minutes.[/QUOTE] What cars are you thinking of? Obviously if you are [I]unable to physically go that fast[/I], there is no issue about going that fast depending on conditions. A couple meters per second difference isn't going to significantly increase or decrease damage at those speeds anyway. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=Impreza;33130824]10-20 minutes is a good chunk of time[/QUOTE] All the 110kph roads in the state I live are major transport routes, so when traveling interstate (what they are used for), it gets into the hours.

[QUOTE=Contag;33130398]I find it pretty hard to see a [B]27 vehicle crash[/B] occurring with cars that are driving at appropriate speeds with adequate braking distances occurring.[/QUOTE] It looks like the trucks at the front caused it by blocking the road and netting the cars.

That's horrible but i somehow thought of this. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVaFQwRqUUg[/media]

[QUOTE=ZestyLemons;33130531]Are you kidding me? Some cars struggle past 100kph already. The speed limit on a lot of highways is 90-100kph, and I really don't think there's even a need to go faster. It's not going to save you more then 10-20 minutes.[/QUOTE] What? Isn't 100kph like 60mph? That's cruisin' speed, nigga.

[QUOTE=Zeke129;33130337]That's really shitty, people need to start learning to drive at an appropriate speed for the weather. If the highway's speed is 110kph and it's raining and foggy, you definitely shouldn't be going 110 If the car in front brakes and you know you wouldn't have enough time to stop without hitting them you're either going to fast or you're too close[/QUOTE] But it's my divine right! If I wanna go 110 on a foggy and/or slippery road and ruthlessly endanger myself and others, I'll go 110!

Here, some roads have speed-signs that actually change according to weather, construction etc. They should start using the same ones there.

It's horrible that one person making a mistake (or being a dick) can cause that much damage, and even kill others.

[QUOTE=Valdor;33130396]I don't even see where you read that the crash was a result of somebody going too fast.[/QUOTE] A pileup can absolutely not happen if everyone is being attentive, unless you want to claim that 27 people independently lost control at the same place and it had nothing to do with anyone else. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=Memobot;33131333]It looks like the trucks at the front caused it by blocking the road and netting the cars.[/QUOTE] And if the drivers of those cars were driving in accordance with the weather they wouldn't have hit the trucks

Happened in my District. Extreme rain, incredibly dark with a huge, bright bonfire right next to it? Awful conditions.

[QUOTE=Contag;33130398]Being too slow is never the sole causative factor in an accident, though. It increases the probability of an accident, but only because others are impatient etc. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] I find it pretty hard to see a [B]27 vehicle crash[/B] occurring with cars that are driving at appropriate speeds with adequate braking distances occurring.[/QUOTE] There are lots of lorries involved, jackknifing can be unpredictable [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] Don't forget the fireworks display, something amy have gone wrong there.

Its a couple of miles from where I live. I hope someone I know, who was almost definitely at that display, isn't hurt.. On that note I hope those who have non-critical injuries pull through :/

While I'm in the next town over, I can attest that the rain here was [I]incredibly[/I] heavy for the whole day.

[QUOTE=SgtTupelo;33132542]Here, some roads have speed-signs that actually change according to weather, construction etc. They should start using the same ones there.[/QUOTE] We do have them here, and this was next to my town, which really sucks :(

:(

In other news:it is confirmed that all peopl died. [highlight](User was banned for this post ("Why post this when it is clearly not correct" - verynicelady))[/highlight]

[QUOTE=Zeke129;33132704]A pileup can absolutely not happen if everyone is being attentive, unless you want to claim that 27 people independently lost control at the same place and it had nothing to do with anyone else. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] And if the drivers of those cars were driving in accordance with the weather they wouldn't have hit the trucks[/QUOTE] There is absolutely no way you could possibly make that claim with any sort of validity.

Police have updated the figures [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-15606278[/url] 7 dead, 51 injured, 34 vehicles involved

[QUOTE=Zeke129;33132704]A pileup can absolutely not happen if everyone is being attentive, unless you want to claim that 27 people independently lost control at the same place and it had nothing to do with anyone else. [editline]5th November 2011[/editline] [/QUOTE] It can very easily. The article mentioned fog and rain at the time of the pileup. Usually when there is a pileup of that magnitude, the fog thick enough to be whiteout or 0 visibility. You cant see shit (including lights) until it is just a few feet in front of you. Even if people are attentive and slowing down for the conditions, people will choose different speeds they consider safe. So someone could easily run up to the backend of a very slow car and not know it. Rain not helping either. Also, the article states that the cause is unknown. There easily could have been a mechanical failure or debris in the road that cause one or numerous cars to swerve and lose control. Heavy fog and rain would make other drivers clueless that an accident is happening in front of them.