Sudden Death

I keep thinking I'm going to write about this.  Then I put it off.  One excuse is I haven't yet figured out how to organize this blog---though i did figure out how to put labels in the head strip.  But it doesn't seem to be the same...I mean, I can figure out how to pick one and write and publish...seems they will all go under "home."  But that's an excuse really.  Besides, very little else in my life is organized.  Or conventionally organized.  Notice I'm not writing about what the topic even yet.

Thursday, Howard Martin-Vegue, 76 years old, lost his life on that stretch of southbound I-95 between High Meadows entrance and Kanner 76 exit.  Suddenly.  Without warning, and even if he had seen it coming, there was nothing, absolutely nothing he could have done to prevent it.

The TCPalm reports a 2006 Freighliner semitrailer plowed into the SUV which then plowed into other vehicles, all of which were traveling slower (obviously).  The driver of the semi was/is 26 years old.  Twenty-six.  I checked the hiring age.  Apparently the minimum age is 21, many long-haul companies hire no younger than 25.  I would give you the source but I can't find it again exactly, but a google will get you a general agreement among sites and blogs.  The kid driving this truck is from Oviedo near Orlando.  The freight was coming from L.A. to Delray Beach.  He had stopped at a rest stop, he said, and slept from 8:30 til 5:30.

The photograph looks like the truck was barely scratched, but the SUV is completely smashed and unrecognizable.  A friend who saw the accident said it looked like a bug on the grill of the truck.  Before I read the first article about the accident, I thought the vehicle was probably a small sports car, one that didn't have much protection.  An SUV?  Mr. Martin-Vegue was inside that vehicle.  Driving south from Port St. Lucie.  The semi crested the hill and couldn't stop in time.  Plys, the semi driver, is at fault.  He didn't have enough time to react, is how the TCPalm reports his comment through the FHP, Tim Frith.

Not enough time to react?  So many tormenting questions...how fast was the rest of the traffic going?  It's quite a distance between the Kanner exit and the next exit up (Bridge road?), was there another accident or fender bender that slowed traffic?  Slowed traffic?  I thought trucks generally maintained a speed under the maximum speed limit.  Plus he sits up higher than most vehicles, broader range of vision.  No time to react?  How fast was he going?  That is never mentioned.  He consented to drug/alcohol testing but what about other distractions--cell phone usage, texting???

Not enough answers.  Not enough time to react.

Those deadly black scars are still engraved on the bridge, several sets, nine or ten cars included in the pile-up.  Not enough time to react.  Five others were taken to hospital, but there has been no news, update, that I've heard of about their conditions.  Others at the scene refused hospital treatment.  Mr. Martin-Vegue was killed on impact, I should think and hope.

When I lived in Oklahoma, a good friend of mine was spiritual director for a woman who was among those responsible for cataloging body parts after the Murrah building bombing.  What a disturbing job.  Not for just anyone.  A great deal of emotional separation must be necessary to spend hours and hours over days and weeks identifying body parts and returning them for burial.  I cannot imagine the courage and love for humanity it would take to accept such a task.

How was Mr. Martin-Vegue's body extracted from that vehicle? Who had that job?  Was it even possible to  do?

Twenty-six years old.  Not enough time to react.  What are Mr. Plys' consequences?  Life-long nightmares?  Was he charged with anything?  Reckless driving?  Vehicular homicide?  The FHP said he was at fault.  What happens now?

I wish I had gone into journalism.  Tracking information is daunting.

Praying for those others who were severely injured.  Praying for Mr. Martin-Vegue's family.  Praying for Andrii V. Plys at 26 who didn't have enough time to react.

Every morning, every time I drive over that very short section of highway I hear echoes, wonder about Mr. Martin-Vegue.  About Andrii Plys. About how much time it takes to prepare for sudden death.