What should he have done?

jendbbay · 05-11-2008, 04:55 PM

I was driving my family home from short stay in the mountains.We were down in the flatlands and in a city zone, as opposed to a more rural straightaway. I had a seizure that caused me to become completely rigid and to floor the car. I have no memory of this. My husband realized that I must be having a seizure or a stroke and tried to remove my leg/foot from the gas pedal. He couldn't break it loose. We crashed into and broke down a light pole at 70MPH, careened across two or more lanes of traffic flew across some decorative rock garden and landed in a right angle of a chain link fence that we broke.

So here is the question. Should he have turned off the car instead of pulling on my leg and bracing for a crash? I am the only injured party and my injury is serious. It is a broken tibia plateau. There are other, worse complications to deal with, but I do have a great prognosis.

I am finally able to ask this question after four months of recovery. I have a long way to go. In many,many ways we were extraordinarily lucky. My husband and son were not hurt. I did not die. We hit no other people or cars. Still, it leaves me wondering. I'm mainly asking for the benefit of others. I won't be driving without anti-seizure meds!

Jiipa · 05-11-2008, 05:12 PM

Glad that you are recovering from your accident and that no one else was injured.

It is not possible to turn a Prius off in this situation, the most he could have done would have been to put it in neutral to keep it from accelerating any more.

**TonyPSchaefer** · 05-11-2008, 05:14 PM

First of all, I'm happy to hear that the situation did not turn out much worse than it did. I hope you have a complete recovery and I wish you the best.

Secondly, I can think of two things that might have been done in that situation.

Press and hold the (POWER) button for three seconds. I believe this is a shut-off procedure even when the car is in motion. Someone will quickly tell me if I'm wrong on this point.
Shift into Neutral by moving the shifter directly to the left and holding it there for a couple seconds.

Now, I may be wrong about this, but it's possible that after either of those things were done, he might have been able to press on the brake pedal. At the very least, he might have been able to control the steering wheel unless you happened to have seized and gone rigid with that as well.

However, we are analyzing this in complete hindsight and assuming he would be able to reach the brake pedal over you with his seatbelt fastened. In the situation, and given the brief period of time it took to play out, probably the best thing was to brace for impact and pray.

Sheepdog · 05-11-2008, 06:37 PM

wow. I am so glad that all survived. It also should be noted that the little car protected your family very well.

It is impossible to say what he could have done differently. What is done is done. He must have done ok as all survived. He deserves a lot of credit.

It is very rare for seizures to come out of the blue like that. Had you no warning at all? If you were already on meds for that I am surprised the state allowed you to keep your DL. I hope you will not drive again until you are better or controlled.

Automobile injury is never a good thing and I sincerely hope you recover quickly and completely. I would have tried to put the car into neutral or tried to push the power button but in reality dont really know of emergency procedures for this.

We may all learn what to do for this from your accident and that may save lives. Thank you for coming out to talk about it.

alanh · 05-11-2008, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TonyPSchaefer

Press and hold the (POWER) button for three seconds. I believe this is a shut-off procedure even when the car is in motion. Someone will quickly tell me if I'm wrong on this point.
Shift into Neutral by moving the shifter directly to the left and holding it there for a couple seconds.

One other option is to press the Park button. It won't actually go into park while at speed, but will beep and go into neutral instead.

However, it's hard to think of these things in an emergency.

Sorry to hear about your accident and I'm also glad it wasn't worse than it was.

statultra · 05-12-2008, 12:06 AM

if i had time to think i wouldve put it in neutral and put my foot over and pressed the brakes,
but im sure i wouldve responded the way your husband did, and he did the best he could.

im glad your ok

RhythmDoctor · 05-12-2008, 12:07 AM

My mother died from a seizure while driving in 1978 - I was 19 at the time. You are very fortunate that you and your family survived. My family ignored a lot of my mother's warning signs (increasing seizures while sleeping, a previous non-fatal incident that may have been a seizure, etc.). Please do not ignore this very big warning sign that you experienced. Make sure that you are fully under control for many months before driving - I'm sure your state's medical board has specific requirements for this. Do follow those requirements to the letter - they are for the safety of you and those who are on the road with you.

One other thing that dawns on me is that if you drive again you should have a car with a hand-activated emergency/parking brake in the center console instead of the foot pedal.

I have many other things to write but it is late at night here on the east coast. My prayers go out to you and your family. I wish you a continued and full recovery.

jendbbay · 05-12-2008, 12:52 AM

I do not have a seizure disorder per se. There were absolutely NO warnings. I have a brain tumor, low grade, with good prognosis. I am now completely seizure free on anti-seizure meds. I did not know I had anything wrong, let alone a brain tumor. Thankfully, there is an extremely effective treatment for me, once I can walk again.

The idea that I would drive without anti seizure meds now is so ridiculous, I will assume something was just unclear in my original message. By the way, I have met many people who ARE driving around without anti-seizure meds because they don't like the side effects of the drug. A smashed, mashed, crushed tibia plateau is no small side effect, so you won't catch me complaining about the meds. Talk about preaching to the choir!

tnthub · 05-12-2008, 08:49 AM

I am sorry to hear of the accident. Most people simply hang on and do the best they can in that situation. It generally takes a trained/professional driver to actually think through the options in a moment of panic.

If the foot could not be removed from the gas pedal the only things to do would be to put the car in neutral and pray the rev limiter kept the engine from blowing, utilize the emergency brake, and instead of removing your leg from the gas pedal, your husband should have attempted to jam his foot on the brake pedal. However almost nobody thinks of these things when in your situation and neither of you did anything wrong. You both did the best you could possibly do.

Keep a good recovery going. I actually have a "kill switch" on my dashboard (however not in a Prius).

Buckland · 05-12-2008, 08:58 AM

Glad to hear you are okay. The only thing you can do now is prepare yourself in the event of it occuring again. Maybe you could try a few things to see if they work, but do it in a place where there are no other cars. It's a good thing to know as we all get older, who the heck knows what might happen while we are driving.

Buck

05-11-2008, 04:55 PM	#1
jendbbay Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 127 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post Friends: 0	What should he have done? I was driving my family home from short stay in the mountains.We were down in the flatlands and in a city zone, as opposed to a more rural straightaway. I had a seizure that caused me to become completely rigid and to floor the car. I have no memory of this. My husband realized that I must be having a seizure or a stroke and tried to remove my leg/foot from the gas pedal. He couldn't break it loose. We crashed into and broke down a light pole at 70MPH, careened across two or more lanes of traffic flew across some decorative rock garden and landed in a right angle of a chain link fence that we broke. So here is the question. Should he have turned off the car instead of pulling on my leg and bracing for a crash? I am the only injured party and my injury is serious. It is a broken tibia plateau. There are other, worse complications to deal with, but I do have a great prognosis. I am finally able to ask this question after four months of recovery. I have a long way to go. In many,many ways we were extraordinarily lucky. My husband and son were not hurt. I did not die. We hit no other people or cars. Still, it leaves me wondering. I'm mainly asking for the benefit of others. I won't be driving without anti-seizure meds! __________________ Jen from Prius capitol of the world, aka Santa Cruz 08 seaside pearl with the works former owner of 07 seaside pearl with HOV stickers. Wrecked the 07. Forgot what I learned from galaxee and Jayman concerning basically everything. Post accident life is tough. Please go easy on me. Last edited by jendbbay; 05-11-2008 at 04:59 PM.

05-11-2008, 05:12 PM	#2
Jiipa MGySgt USMC (Ret) Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Oahu, Hawaii Posts: 314 My Car: 2008 Prius Model: Package: #2 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Re: What should he have done? Glad that you are recovering from your accident and that no one else was injured. It is not possible to turn a Prius off in this situation, the most he could have done would have been to put it in neutral to keep it from accelerating any more.

05-11-2008, 05:14 PM	#3
TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator Join Date: May 2004 Location: Far-North Chicagoland Posts: 10,443 My Car: 2004 Prius Model: Package: #9 Thanks: 37 Thanked 160 Times in 101 Posts Friends: 23	Re: What should he have done? First of all, I'm happy to hear that the situation did not turn out much worse than it did. I hope you have a complete recovery and I wish you the best. Secondly, I can think of two things that might have been done in that situation. Press and hold the (POWER) button for three seconds. I believe this is a shut-off procedure even when the car is in motion. Someone will quickly tell me if I'm wrong on this point. Shift into Neutral by moving the shifter directly to the left and holding it there for a couple seconds. Now, I may be wrong about this, but it's possible that after either of those things were done, he might have been able to press on the brake pedal. At the very least, he might have been able to control the steering wheel unless you happened to have seized and gone rigid with that as well. However, we are analyzing this in complete hindsight and assuming he would be able to reach the brake pedal over you with his seatbelt fastened. In the situation, and given the brief period of time it took to play out, probably the best thing was to brace for impact and pray. __________________ Proud father of Priapus: the '04 Tideland BC9 with an OEM EV button and sense of self-righteousness Current Mileage Chicago Prius Group Website Chicago Hybrid Group on FaceBook Find me on faceBook

05-11-2008, 06:37 PM	#4
Sheepdog C'Mere Sheepie! Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Sanford FLorida Posts: 1,050 My Car: 2008 Prius Model: Package: #2 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 6	Re: What should he have done? wow. I am so glad that all survived. It also should be noted that the little car protected your family very well. It is impossible to say what he could have done differently. What is done is done. He must have done ok as all survived. He deserves a lot of credit. It is very rare for seizures to come out of the blue like that. Had you no warning at all? If you were already on meds for that I am surprised the state allowed you to keep your DL. I hope you will not drive again until you are better or controlled. Automobile injury is never a good thing and I sincerely hope you recover quickly and completely. I would have tried to put the car into neutral or tried to push the power button but in reality dont really know of emergency procedures for this. We may all learn what to do for this from your accident and that may save lives. Thank you for coming out to talk about it. __________________ Sheepdog- Protecting my flock 2008 Barcelona Red "Lil Rachel" A Greyhound in the back seat can't hurt! *Mods:* Rear Bumper Pad, Hood Deflector, No Reverse Beep, Garmin 660 GPS unit, Zaino and Aerospace 303, wheel rings gone, Scan Gauge II, tire inflation at 42/40, PriusChat decal!

05-12-2008, 12:06 AM	#6
statultra uber-Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: cape coral, FL Posts: 682 My Car: 2005 Prius Model: Package: #9 Thanks: 0 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts Friends: 0	Re: What should he have done? if i had time to think i wouldve put it in neutral and put my foot over and pressed the brakes, but im sure i wouldve responded the way your husband did, and he did the best he could. im glad your ok

05-12-2008, 12:07 AM	#7
RhythmDoctor Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Swarthmore, PA Posts: 130 My Car: 2008 Prius Model: Package: #2 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Re: What should he have done? My mother died from a seizure while driving in 1978 - I was 19 at the time. You are very fortunate that you and your family survived. My family ignored a lot of my mother's warning signs (increasing seizures while sleeping, a previous non-fatal incident that may have been a seizure, etc.). Please do not ignore this very big warning sign that you experienced. Make sure that you are fully under control for many months before driving - I'm sure your state's medical board has specific requirements for this. Do follow those requirements to the letter - they are for the safety of you and those who are on the road with you. One other thing that dawns on me is that if you drive again you should have a car with a hand-activated emergency/parking brake in the center console instead of the foot pedal. I have many other things to write but it is late at night here on the east coast. My prayers go out to you and your family. I wish you a continued and full recovery.

05-12-2008, 12:52 AM	#8
jendbbay Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 127 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post Friends: 0	Re: What should he have done? I do not have a seizure disorder per se. There were absolutely NO warnings. I have a brain tumor, low grade, with good prognosis. I am now completely seizure free on anti-seizure meds. I did not know I had anything wrong, let alone a brain tumor. Thankfully, there is an extremely effective treatment for me, once I can walk again. The idea that I would drive without anti seizure meds now is so ridiculous, I will assume something was just unclear in my original message. By the way, I have met many people who ARE driving around without anti-seizure meds because they don't like the side effects of the drug. A smashed, mashed, crushed tibia plateau is no small side effect, so you won't catch me complaining about the meds. Talk about preaching to the choir!

05-12-2008, 08:49 AM	#9
tnthub Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 463 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Re: What should he have done? I am sorry to hear of the accident. Most people simply hang on and do the best they can in that situation. It generally takes a trained/professional driver to actually think through the options in a moment of panic. If the foot could not be removed from the gas pedal the only things to do would be to put the car in neutral and pray the rev limiter kept the engine from blowing, utilize the emergency brake, and instead of removing your leg from the gas pedal, your husband should have attempted to jam his foot on the brake pedal. However almost nobody thinks of these things when in your situation and neither of you did anything wrong. You both did the best you could possibly do. Keep a good recovery going. I actually have a "kill switch" on my dashboard (however not in a Prius). __________________ 2002 Champion New England Dragway 2001 GM High Tech Shootout Winner 1999 Champion Oxford Dragway http://www.tntdragracing.com

05-12-2008, 08:58 AM	#10
Buckland Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Cobourg Ontario Posts: 61 My Car: 2008 Prius Model: Package: B Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Re: What should he have done? Glad to hear you are okay. The only thing you can do now is prepare yourself in the event of it occuring again. Maybe you could try a few things to see if they work, but do it in a place where there are no other cars. It's a good thing to know as we all get older, who the heck knows what might happen while we are driving. Buck