Caught on Camera: Squid gets saved in Philly

[The Dude]

Fiery motorcycle crash caught on tape | Video | 6abc.com
Squid was flying down a city street when some bonehead made an illegal u-turn in front of him (from the curb no less). I suspect he grabbed a handful of brake in panic because he lowsided and burst into flames before reaching the car. The car exits the frame, but I don't think it left the scene. Lucky for our squid, some workers from the city bus company saw what happened and rushed to his aid. The footage is grainy, but it doesn't look like he was wearing any gear (or helmet). Thankfully, he didn't have to wait for the fire dept to show up. I doubt he would have survived. He escaped with some broken bones and burns.

Remember: ATGATT, and slow down in the city :spank:


Fiery motorcycle crash caught on tape | 6abc.com

FELTONVILLE - June 23, 2011 (WPVI) -- It started with a car making an illegal u-turn at Second Street and Wyoming Avenue, right into the path of a speeding motorcycle.

Surveillance video shows the cycle skid on its side and slammed into the side of the car.

"It flew. It was flying. It was the worst thing I ever saw," Linda Green of Feltonville said.

The motorcycle then burst into flames and the rider became trapped under the bike.

"I was horrified. My heart dropped when I saw that. It really did," witness Elijah Henderson said.

An office worker saw it all from a window. He called out to two other men. They ran out into the street and, without hesitation, they literally dove into the flames to save the motorcyclist.

SEPTA employee John Solecki and another man pulled the man from under the motorcycle.

"He was under the motorcycle. He was on fire. The motorcycle was on fire," Solecki said.

John tore off his shirt and used it to try to smother the flames.

One of the men then grabbed a fire extinguisher on his way out of the SEPTA office building.

"His legs were on fire. We were trying to get the fire out. Steve [Boon] brought the fire extinguisher out. I doused his legs and could see that they were out. And went over to try to put the fire out, but the heat of the fuel and oil was just intense. It was no match for the fire extinguisher," SEPTA employee Joe Benedict said.

The heat was so intense, the men had to drag the unconscious victim further away.

At any moment, the gas tank could have exploded, but they weren't thinking about that.

"You don't even think about it, it's just something you would do. To see somebody on fire, it's scary and you just got to help," Solecki said.

"You see a person, whether it be a brother or father, you got to help them," SEPTA employee Steve Boon said.

The victim is identified as Walter Rivera.

He has broken bones and burns, but is expected to recover.

He is lucky to be alive thanks to the three men who risked their own lives to save his.

To update, I read this in another article:

Rivera was helmetless and wearing shorts.

Rivera is in critical condition with third-degree burns, police said.

It was the second time Solecki and his crew had rushed to a downed motorcyclist's aid.

A year and a half ago, in a similar accident, another motorcycle driver crashed into a car making a U-turn at the same spot and was badly hurt, Solecki said.

Also, the rider is a local. He's 24. The bike was identified as a Suzuki, so chalk another one up for the Gixxer crowd. Oh, and big surprise here... it was a woman making the illegal u-turn :shakehead:

SEPTA workers help save motorcyclist after crash | Philadelphia Inquirer | 06/24/2011

 

[rsw81]

In terms of an insurance clame, I'd venture it's 100% the cars fault for making an illegal u-turn into traffic. I'm sure the bike could have done something better, so I gave him 10% ownership, but I think this is basically all the cars fault.

 

[Erci]

In terms of an insurance clame, I'd venture it's 100% the cars fault for making an illegal u-turn into traffic. I'm sure the bike could have done something better, so I gave him 10% ownership, but I think this is basically all the cars fault.

Agree with 100% car's fault when it comes to insurance. However, when it comes to actual crash, I say it was 100% avoidable .. even EASILY avoidable. Notice the car starts moving at 24 second mark. Crash doesn't occur till 27 second mark.
If the rider had any clue (riding on city street), he should have been scanning the whole time and would have noticed the car on the right about to possibly do something stupid.. he should've taken lots of speed off and should have been ready to come to full stop.
Ignorant cagers SUCK, but if the rider followed basic MSF principles this crash would not have occurred.

 

[Jb40k]

The bike must have been travelling at some hell of a speed to slide and catch fire like that... I'm with Erci, 100% avoidable on the riders part.

I don't quite undertsand the illegality of the the U-turn, I'd say speed was the largest factor in this accident.

 

[dxh24]

Dunno how to judge this one, You wanna go with the squid just because obviously he was the one in harms way here but judging by other traffic and the setting, the kid was obviously going a "wee bit" over the speed limit. In driver ed. i distinctly remember our instructor telling us to "leave a way out" using space speed and direction.... had this kid been going at the pace of traffic I don't think it would have happened... Had he been ATGATT he probably wouldn't have been hurting so bad but hey, a squids a squid. However the guy making the illegal U also obviously wasn't being aware either... Tough call, i'd say they're both in the wrong :spank:

 

[The Dude]

I don't quite undertsand the illegality of the the U-turn, I'd say speed was the largest factor in this accident.

That maneuver is illegal in the states. For one, you can't just make a u-turn in the middle of the street... to avoid exactly what happened in the video. What made it worse was that the car pulled out from the curb and across two lanes of travel.

 

[CanadianFZ6]

The bike must have been travelling at some hell of a speed to slide and catch fire like that... I'm with Erci, 100% avoidable on the riders part.

I don't quite undertsand the illegality of the the U-turn, I'd say speed was the largest factor in this accident.

Exactly... the bike was breaking the law too... High rate of speed, through a town even??? Not being arrogant, but if I was that rider, I would not have hit the car because I would have been doing close to the speed limit.... The car would have had to listen to a long blast of my horn, though...

 

[CanadianFZ6]

That maneuver is illegal in the states. For one, you can't just make a u-turn in the middle of the street... to avoid exactly what happened in the video. What made it worse was that the car pulled out from the curb and across two lanes of travel.

Agreed, but do you want to be right or do you want to be alive??? If the rider was doing the speed limit, he would not have hit the car... Yes, the car made a reckless move, but we as motorcyclists can't afford just to be right... we need to drive much more defensive than our car driving, neanderthal cousins...

 

[FIZZER6]

I don't quite undertsand the illegality of the the U-turn, I'd say speed was the largest factor in this accident.

That maneuver is illegal in the states. For one, you can't just make a u-turn in the middle of the street... to avoid exactly what happened in the video. What made it worse was that the car pulled out from the curb and across two lanes of travel.

The Dude nailed it. The only legal U-turns in the US are at intersections not marked "No U-turns" and in some areas with a center turn lane U-turns are legal from the center turn lane only.

If you are going to do something illegal, at least check your mirror to make sure you aren't going to cause an accident in the process! Car is 100% at fault but I agree with others who said that this crash could have been easily avoidable (as a street like this is likely 25 or 35 mph speed limit) if the motorcyclist was obeying the speed limit and scanning ahead like he should.

 

[The Dude]

Agreed, but do you want to be right or do you want to be alive??? If the rider was doing the speed limit, he would not have hit the car... Yes, the car made a reckless move, but we as motorcyclists can't afford just be right... we need to drive much more defensive than our car driving, neanderthal cousins...

I started the thread and said both motorists were in the wrong. I'm certainly not trying to exonerate the rider. I was just trying to explain to the other user why that u-turn was illegal. I'm not sure of the laws overseas, but I would hope that maneuver would be prohibited everywhere.

 

[Crax]

I was riding passenger with my wife in a car a few years ago and was hit by a woman making an illegal u-turn. She was in the right lane on a 4 lane road(2 lanes each direction) just past a stoplight and a curve. We were traveling the same direction and she turned right into us. She was cited by the police for an illegal u-turn within 25 ft of a curve.

Her insurance tried to argue it was a no fault accident. After we told them they were full of it, they finally admitted it was her fault as she was the only one cited by the police and ended up being 100% at fault.

The car in the video caused this accident and should be 100% responsible IMO.

 

[Nelly]

Agree with 100% car's fault when it comes to insurance. However, when it comes to actual crash, I say it was 100% avoidable .. even EASILY avoidable. Notice the car starts moving at 24 second mark. Crash doesn't occur till 27 second mark.
If the rider had any clue (riding on city street), he should have been scanning the whole time and would have noticed the car on the right about to possibly do something stupid.. he should've taken lots of speed off and should have been ready to come to full stop.
Ignorant cagers SUCK, but if the rider followed basic MSF principles this crash would not have occurred.

We don't know what is out of the shot, maybe the rider just looked over his shoulder or had just looked at a concealed entrance? Add this with possible inexperience + reaction times + speed. Those two seconds are eaten up really quickly.
The bike is already down when it hits the car. Based on this I reckon that the rider had already seen the car and had to brake violently causing the low side.

The car is wrong for making the U-turn. The rider is wrong for speeding and not wearing any gear. Ultimately it doesn't matter who's wrong. A young man is lying in a hospital bed in a critical condition.
A very good reason to gear up and not speed in populated areas.

Nelly

 

[VEGASRIDER]

When it comes to riding on city streets, a rider must know HOW, WHERE and WHAT to look for. Obviously, speed is always a factor. That is why I tend to keep my speed to or no more than 5 over on surface streets.

Sorry to say, but even though it's the car's fault, this rider did not know how to ride properly on the streets, and it was just a matter of time before something bad happens. He is just very lucky to be alive. Unfortunatley, there are many riders just like him who will eventually crash. It's just a matter of time.

Just about anybody can learn and sucessfully operate a motorcycle. But what they lack is the mental bag of tools that they need to know in order to ride out on the streets.

Last weekend, I picked up a Yamaha Roadster Silverado Cruiser for my roomate. She bought it off her brother down in LA who just got a new Harley. He just recently got into riding a motorcycle out on the streets a couple years ago after riding and racing dirt all his life and it was time for him to upgrade. He's a great rider as I have ridden with him out in the Mohve desert kicking my ass, but......... In short, I gave him a 30 minute crash course on street riding strategies as far as knowing how, where and what to look for in addition to lane choice and lane position. He then realized how lucky he was to be alive. He had no idea that he was riding so wrong in traffic. He's gonna take the MSF course just because he realized that he needs time in the classroom.

 

[stevesnj]

regardless of what speed the motorcycle was going the u-turn by the car forced the cyclist to dump the bike. 0% motorcyclist fault, 100% cagers fault.

 

[iSteve]

regardless of what speed the motorcycle was going the u-turn by the car forced the cyclist to dump the bike. 0% motorcyclist fault, 100% cagers fault.

regardless of the speed? So you are saying that a U turn is more dangerous then doing 60 mph down a hill while approaching a intersection. Not to mention no helmet and only wearing a T shirt and shorts.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Forgot to mention that this video shows a great illustration why every rider needs to go out in an open parking lot and practice their emergency braking and swerving skills on a regular basis.

Basic human instict whenever something pops out in front of you is to slam on your brakes. Fine in a car with four tires, but slam on the brakes on a bike, and you won't even get a chance to avoid the collision as you will be on the ground before you can say Oh Sh....

You need to develope that muscle memory so you won't end up like the rider in the video, lowsiding due to improper braking. Maximum braking is to use both brakes without locking either way. If that rider would have been able to do that, then maybe he could have had a chance to swerve to the right. If you never practice swerving, it might not even come to your attention that this would even be an option, as you would just end up target fixating on the object and collide.

Another reason why I never ride directly down the middle of the roadway in the city, best surface for emergency braking will be where the tire tracks are. I don't know if this rider was actually in the center of his lane or not, but at least give yourself a surviving chance by positioning yourself correctly within the lane in case emergency braking becomes part of your corrective action.

 

[Alfa95]

It didn't say how fast he was going in the article, for all we know that could be a 45 to 50 MPH area.

 

[iSteve]

The newspaper article I found said a very high rate of speed but your right it could have been 45. But my point is speeding is just as much at fault as the u turn. If the car never made the u turn the accident may not have happened but likewise if the bike was doing 25 it also would't of happened.

Car, motorcycle, bicycle or skateboard if your on the streets you can never expect people are looking out for your safety. I always think everyone else on the road is texting or drinking.

 

[champion221elite]

That maneuver is illegal in the states. For one, you can't just make a u-turn in the middle of the street... to avoid exactly what happened in the video. What made it worse was that the car pulled out from the curb and across two lanes of travel.

U Turns are legal in Michigan except in places where prohibited such as downtown areas and places where traffic congestion is a problem. Unless there's a sign that says "No U-Turns", they're perfectly legal.

BTW, I'd say the accident was about 80% the car's fault and about 20% motorcycle fault.

The car driver should have never attempted that U-turn (probably wasn't legal anyway since it was in an intersection). The motorcycle rider appeared to be moving at a rate of speed faster than you would normally see in a town setting. I'm thinking the motorcyclist was speeding and closed the gap between the car much faster than the car driver anticipated (if the car driver even saw the motorcycle to begin with).

 

[stevesnj]

regardless of the speed? So you are saying that a U turn is more dangerous then doing 60 mph down a hill while approaching a intersection. Not to mention no helmet and only wearing a T shirt and shorts.

Speed wouldn't matter since the car did what it wasn't supposed to do. No proof from the video the rider was speeding, he could of been coming around a turn, sped up to try and escape into the opposing lane...no one knows and speed can be misleading on video. The fact that the driver made their u-turn from the right lane and blocked the road and the rider couldn't got right, and couldn't go left because a car was coming from opposing traffic so opposing lane escape was out of the question. What would you do? Some people on here seem like they are super escape artists from any situation. The lack of proper gear seems to me to be the only thing this rider lacked.