It ain't always the drunks: Woman sweetening coffee drives into Santiam River

depakid

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Sat May-29-10 10:06 PM
Original message

It ain't always the drunks: Woman sweetening coffee drives into Santiam River

A woman who was trying to put sugar in her coffee while driving ended up with her sport utility vehicle in the Santiam River.

Trena Fiels, a 42-year-old from Detroit, was heading westbound on Oregon 22 near milepost 38 when she decided her coffee needed sweetening. During the maneuver, she drove off the highway and then overcorrected, sending the vehicle down a 40-foot embankment to the river.

She was taken to an area hospital with minor injuries. Oregon State Police said she was wearing a seat belt.

More: http://www.oregonlive.com/roadreport/index.ssf/2010/05/woman_tries_to_sweeten_coffee.html

Careful out there, folks.

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Swamp Rat

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Sat May-29-10 10:08 PM
Response to Original message

1. Thank goodness that idiot did not kill a cyclist or pedestrian or hit a deer.

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EFerrari

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Sat May-29-10 10:11 PM
Response to Original message

2. My brother's SUV has a DVD player so the kids can watch in the back seat.

When did cars become amusement parks? There's something seriously wrong with this culture. lol

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ashling

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Sat May-29-10 10:13 PM
Response to Original message

3. That's 1 less SUV

oh the stupid

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Hello_Kitty

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Sat May-29-10 10:31 PM
Response to Original message

4. I STILL know people who text and drive, which is unbelievable to me.

I don't care how dexterous you think you are. You can't do it.

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CoffeeCat

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Sun May-30-10 01:27 AM
Response to Reply #4

11. There was a story on the news...

...about texting and driving--and I learned something that stunned me.

If a person is on the highway, texting and driving for just a few seconds--the
time they spend texting and not looking at the road--is the length of a football field.

Isn't that crazy?

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sandnsea

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Sat May-29-10 10:35 PM
Response to Original message

5. Over-correcting is a huge hazard

Stay calm and don't jerk the wheel. It can happen when you swerve to miss a kitty.

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depakid

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Sat May-29-10 10:46 PM
Response to Reply #5

8. Heavy, oversized SUV- wet windy road- overcorrection can also equal a head on or roll

Edited on Sat May-29-10 10:52 PM by depakid

or, as swamp rat noted, dead pedestrians or cyclists.

Seen all of the above too many times.

IMO people really ought to get some extra drivers training for these big SUV's. Their handling characteristics are quite different than an ordinary vehicles- and God forbid people take them off road without knowing what they're doing.

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sandnsea

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Sat May-29-10 10:55 PM
Response to Reply #8

9. A 15 year old was paralyzed driving a car

He over-corrected after tuning the radio. Over-correcting is a serious problem and can happen in a variety of vehicles and situations. It's an experience problem in any vehicle.

And driving off-road is another experience altogether, whether it's a truck, jeep, dirt bike, sandrail, or even a horse.

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depakid

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Sun May-30-10 02:16 AM
Response to Reply #9

12. Inexperienced drivers can screw up in a car easily enough- but a hulking SUV is entirely different

Edited on Sun May-30-10 03:15 AM by depakid

in terms of control.

Don't even get me started on bonehead offroad driving. People in this neck of the woods drive out on the beach in their fancy way too heavy rigs, without even bagging their tires down- then wonder why they stuck in the soft stuff.

They try to haul ass through a patch of clay like mud (the driver becoming a passenger) ending up against a tree or in the ditch. Or they drive out on a wet boggy, field (sometimes as a "shortcut"). Hey, it looked "green and all."

LOL- you know 'em and we've seen 'em. Some of us have pulled 'em out.

Then again- in Oregon, there's also snow and ice driving....

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flvegan

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Sat May-29-10 10:45 PM
Response to Original message

6. It's called "driving" people. Stop being so fucking stupid.

Put the phone away. Turn the stereo down. Don't try kitchen activities in the driver's seat. JUST FUCKING DRIVE. How hard can it be to pay attention to the task at hand?

Fucking idiots.

Glad she's not in rough shape, though.

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petronius

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Sat May-29-10 10:45 PM
Response to Original message

7. That looks like a strongly flowing river; I'd say she was lucky

Seems a little odd not to just put the sweetener in at the coffee-shop, since she had to pick up the packet anyway... :shrug:

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struggle4progress

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Sun May-30-10 12:32 AM
Response to Original message

10. Don't "____-n-drive." Just drive. If ya need to ____, stop drivin

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Hello_Kitty

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Sun May-30-10 02:13 PM
Response to Reply #10

13. People laugh at me for being such a cautious driver.

Both hands on the steering wheel, eyes on the road, no phone calls and I even keep the conversation to a minimum. I never tailgait and I try to avoid abrupt lane changes. I hate driving for the most part because of inconsiderate unsafe assholes out there engaging in all those behaviors. "But I've never had an accident!" So what? It only takes one time.

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