Multi-Vehicle Car Accident Captured on Google Street View
Monday, 15th October 2007 by Alex Turnbull
Last week Google updated their Street View coverage to include Chicago, Pittsburgh, Portland, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Tucson - bringing the total number of Street View cities up to 15.
So far the most dramatic discovery in these new images has been made in Phoenix, Arizona, where the Google Street View Van has come across a pretty serious accident involving a Range Rover and an Audi in a collision at a junction.
Dramatically, the speed of the impact has actually flipped the Range Rover right over onto its roof. Fortunately however it doesn't look like there were any serious injuries on this occasion, as by the time the Google Van approaches a policemen is already on scene, but there doesn't appear to be an ambulance around anywhere.
So can anyone work out exactly what happened here?
Thanks to Fraser.
About the author
Alex has decided that his title will be Senior Vice President of Stuff.
There are no lights at the intersection. There are no skid marks behind the Audi. The Audi was travelling southbound on N 7th Street. There is no damage on the passenger side of the Range Rover which indicates that the Range Rover was travelling eastbound on E Earl Dr. The Range Rover was turning onto N 7th – probably turning left to go northbound on N 7th.
Looks like the driver of the Audi crashed into the Range Rover just as the Audi was turning onto N 7th. I still can’t believe that the Range Rover was flipped. I know that SUVs have a higher center of gravity, but I would have figured the Ranger Rover would have been pushed down or flipped N 7th. Very unusual.
The driver of the red SUV (a Subaru?) appears to be luckiest person that day; apparently managing to avoid crashing into the overturned Range Rover.
The interesting thing is that because of this accident, there is a gap in Street View on N 7th between E Earl and E Verde Ln. You can see that the driver tried to get back to E Earl via E Catalina, but that dead ends before N 7th. So the driver than followed N 5th to E Verde.
If you take a look at the Street View image at N 7th and E Verde, you will see that an ambulance has arrived – you need to zoom.
that’s quite incredible. I find it very interesting to see the effect that this crash had on the mapping project. Like V.C. mentioned, there are several gaps in coverage, and probably some bonus footage of minor streets, that would have not been present if it wasn’t for this accident.
I wonder what other images are in here that are a result of some mistake of the driver or road issue?
My guess is that the SUV had flipped not because of the collision (it seems that the collision speed was low, jugging by little damage to the cars), but because it tried to perform some sharp maneuver to avoid collision, and this caused the car to roll. Another possibility, that this SUV actually flipped over before the collision with Audi, by simply taking the turn with speed too high for such kind of a car, and other cars were trying to avoid already flipped car – one successfully (Subaru) and other with less luck (Audi).
I can feel my neck turning into rubber. Of course I want to post about how voyeuristic and invasive this all makes us, but I clicked the images to full screen. Our fascination at this stuff is endless. Now I’ve got to go over to YouTube to type “Deadly Crash” in the search field
Here’s another crash in San Diego with two fire trucks in attendance.
View Placemark
@Keir: I don’t think this is an accident, the damage to the white car seems too severe for the size of the street (that is, the speed). The white car has apparently had the Jaws of Life treatment, and the equipment doesn’t line out with an emergency response. The fire truck to the right has chocks under the rear wheel, and the one to the left has a whole assortment of stuff on the bumper. And a fireman’s helmet on the backseat of the white car…
Perhaps, a training exercise?
Also notice a can of petrol on the fender of that fire truck… perhaps they are going to set it alite for exercise?
Also…best sighting ever?
Also, if you notice the cars are right next to an auto salvage yard. I would guess the firefighters were there practicing on cars with the jaws of life
@Jens, the exercise version seems totally unfeasible to me. I don’t think one will do an exercise in the middle of an intersection during day, even without fencing off the area. Besides, the smashed bumper of the Audi (torn off and small debris on the ground) looks completely real and not like anything made on purpose. I onece had a low-speed (20-30kmph combined) accident, and my car’s front looked much like the Audi’s in this image.
BTW, my version with Audi hitting already flipped SUV can explain, why there is no marks of collision of visible side of SUV – it could be just on other (left) side. Vehicle laying upside down on roof aren’t very stable, and hit of the car (Audi) could have easily make it spinning, hiding the collision point from the view. And if this correct, Vincent’s version about SUV original direction could be wrong because it could come from virtually every direction, but than spinning to its final position.
I think Vincent is right that the Range Rover was on Earl, turning onto 7th northbound and failed to yield to southbound traffic on 7th.
I further postulate that the Range Rover was driven by the guy in khaki short-alls. This guy suffers from paranoid delusions involving minivans with big black cylinders on the roof. He heard one was in the neighborhood. He assumed it was looking for him. He did what any person suffering from such delusions would do. He stole the Range Rover and high-tailed it out of there. Unfortunately for him the Audi was heading south on 7th just as he sped through the intersection. He swerved to avoid the impact, but failed and rolled the Range Rover. He is in the process of surrendering to the motorcycle cop, ready to be handcuffed, in the hopes the police can protect him from those mysterious minivans. One second after this picture was taken he turns his head, notices the minivan and runs screaming through the hedge behind him. He was found hours later cowering in a tree along the 13th fairway of the Phoenix Country Club.
How do I know all this I hear you asking? I’m the guy on the corner pretending to tie my shoes, though if you look closely my shoes are slip-ons.
That’s exactly how it happened… pretty much.
Zigmar, I believe that comments #6, #7 and #9 are all in reference to Keir’s post #5.
I agree about the jaws of life training… That would explain the fuel can on the bumper of the fire engine and the condition of the cars.
With the high center of gravity of SUV’s it isn’t surprising at all that if flipped. Cars are dangerous, people should walk. But… I live in Brazil and people here drive like lunatics.
If you click a few steps down E Earll, you’ll also see an Isuzu SUV loaded down with pallets parked in an awkward spot. It may be related to the accident or just a nice person who pulled over to help. Also note the bad ass Mustang turning the corner by the accident. Nice car!
It looks to me like the Audi was traveling south on N 7th and the Range Rover ran the stop sign and turned left in front of it (attempting a turn from E Earll to travel north on N 7th). There’s plenty of damage to both vehicles — the front-end of the Audi is all over the road along with fluid from the engine (you can see this damage better on the Earll St view). The collision damage to the Range Rover is entirely on the other side — it was hit on the driver’s side and the impact flipped it once. The Audi was most likely going straight through this intersection on N 7th where there’s no stop sign, so it wouldn’t have slowed down, providing the speed necessary to flip the Range Rover.
You should add the Arizona stamp at the top of the post (and put it in the equivalent category too)
Another crash 9398 Farm-to-Market 78
San Antonio texas
it looks like they change or update that place because it doesnt exist anymore … and you cant see the crash!!
I can’t see the accident either, but one thing that nobody has mentioned yet is the ‘reverse lane’ on 7th street… 7th Street and 7th Ave date from the pre-freeway days, and in order to manage traffic into/out of downtown during rush hour, they take the middle lane and turn it into a driving lane, morning rush hour, one is 3 lanes South, 2 lanes North, vice-versa at the end of day… The other road is the opposite. I could never remember which was which, I avoided those two streets like the plague during rush hour, or read the signs if I had to drive them. There are no left turns allwoed at this time.
Long story long, many, many accidents have happened because of this, and that may be why the original posters never saw skid marks where they expected to see them. Phoenix is seriously considering dumoing this obsolete more of traffic control, let’s hope they finally do.