So Much for Confronting Your Fears

It was just last Sunday that the Washington Post ran an article on confronting your irrational fears, be they phobias about spiders, flying, or.... Driving across long bridges. The last one is one that effects a number of people here in the DC area because of the 4.3 mile long Chesapeake Bay Bridge. If you're going to one of the Maryland or Delaware beaches from the nation's capital, you pretty much have to drive across it. The state of Maryland even employs people at either end of the structure just to drive the cars of people too frightened to do so themselves. According to bridge employees, they have even seen some people climb into the trunk of their cars and close the lids just so they don't have to see what's going on.

Pretty damn irrational, eh?

So what happens just a week after the article ran? You guessed it: A vehicle went into the water.

Actually, it was a tractor trailer that crashed through a Jersey wall at about 4 A.M. this past Sunday. Driver John R. Short died, though it's not yet clear if it was the impact that killed him or if he drowned. The accident actually took place on the eastern approach to the main suspension bridge, but it still made for a 30 foot drop to the water.

When rescue personnel first arrived, they saw two other cars that had been involved in the accident. They even thought that was the full extent of the accident: Two cars. After a few minutes someone noticed that there a couple of big truck axles sitting in the roadway.... But no truck.

The Bay bridge actually consists of two separate structures. There is the original 56 year old bridge, which has two lanes and normally handles eastbound traffic. Then there's a newer three land bridge, which usually takes the westbound vehicles. Neither bridge has shoulders, so if you get into trouble, your options are severely limited.

This past Saturday night the three lane bridge was shut down for maintenance. The older bridge was handling all the traffic, with one lane in each direction.

According to witnesses, a Camaro drifted into the path of the oncoming semi. Upon impact the truck jacknifed, clipped a Toyota Prius that had been behind the Camaro, and then smashed through the jersey wall. The rig then rode along the concrete barrier for about 100 feet before falling over the side. That's when the axles were torn from the underside.

The Post managed to interview the 19 year old driver of the Camaro, and it was, well, somewhat disturbing. Candy Lynn Baldwin freely admits to having fallen asleep behind the wheel, then waking up after the crash pinned in her car. She then went on to describe her injuries: Broken kneecaps, and injuries to her spleen and liver. She also says that according to doctors, she may be able to walk again after going through physical therapy.

Huh? Is this bimbo for real? Does Baldwin honestly expect us to somehow feel sorry for her? At no point does she bother to express any remorse for having killed a man. Obviously the crash was all about her and the terrible inconveniences she must now endure. That a family has now been left without a father simply never crossed her mind.

Someone needs to sit down with her and explain exactly why John Short definitely won't be walking again.

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FOLLOW UP--Posted 8/14

Turns out that John Short wasn't even supposed to be working that morning. He got a call from his boss late Saturday night asking if he could do a run. The company couldn't find any other available drivers, so he agreed to do it.

Also, police say that based on physical evidence such as skid marks and debris, it's apparent that Short tried to avoid the collision. However, since there are no shoulders, his options were limited.