"I didn't care for that car anyway", said the fox

[cellio]

The easiest way to describe what happened to us this afternoon is: we were in the right lane of Baum Blvd, a four-lane "25mph" (yeah right) road, when we were hit by oncoming traffic. Um, right. No bones are broken and there was no blood, but lots and lots of muscles are rebelling against both of us, some of which waited a few hours to make their complaints known. Tomorrow will not be fun, I suspect. And just in case there was any doubt, yes, airbags can inflict bruises. (Dani, who was driving, said he didn't notice any impact from his airbag. I most definitely did from mine, but then would expect that in the death seat.)

This should be a no-brainer as far as fault is concerned, though it may be complicated some because the person who hit us said he had to swerve to dodge someone else, and that driver also stopped for the police report. I don't know if that's true or not, but either way it shouldn't be our problem; not only was he in our lane but he crossed another lane of oncoming traffic to get there. But Dani hadn't been planning to replace that car just yet, and the odds are pretty good that it was totaled. (The tow-truck driver offered that opinion, though of course he doesn't make the call in the end.)

I've never seen an airbag go off before and was a little surprised by it. One moment some idiot was barreling right toward us and the next I was sitting in a cloud of smoke wondering how in the world our engine could be on fire (that being the only explanation for smoke that then came to mind). Once I was willing to move at all I had to grope around quite a bit to find my glasses (I was unwilling to open the door or move my feet much until I found them). Fortunately they seem undamaged. We found Dani's glasses in the back seat. Yup, airbags pack a punch, but it beats the alternative.

Auto glass is amazing stuff. The windshield was completely shattered (tiny little pieces), but held entirely in place.

Comments

[tsjafo.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you weren't injured. *hugs*

[loosecanon.livejournal.com]

Scary stuff. Hope you are all ok and that things work out tolerably easily.

[richardf8]

מי שגמלך כל טוב, הוא יגמלך כל טוב סלה

[dr-zrfq.livejournal.com]

I am glad that neither you nor Dani were seriously hurt. *gentle hugs*

Nevertheless, if you haven't yet been seen by a doctor, make arrangements to do so pronto -- for dealing with insurance and lawyer fu on all sides, if nothing else.

Even *one* airbag deploying generally totals the car; *two* bags going off is a virtual certainty of totalification. Which means you may need to pursue legal remedies for actual replacement cost and not just cheapest-book-value of car, not to forget medical expenses and anything else that might result. Le sigh.

[kayre]

Wow, glad you are both okay! And yeah, tomorrow could be bad... if it's too bad, do get to an emergency clinic, the other guy's insurance will be paying for it all (and your insurance may cover it until they can collect from the other company).

[amergina.livejournal.com]

So glad you are both ok!

I second the idea of going and seeing a doctor anyway. Better safe than sorry.

[miz-hatbox.livejournal.com]

Yikes! I am so thankful that you guys are okay!

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

Well, meep. I'm very glad you weren't injured.

*hugs you warmly*

[schulman.livejournal.com]

Wow. I'm glad you're both okay.

[vonstrassburg.livejournal.com]

Glad to hear you're uninjured, if somewhat shaken. Yes, I've had a similar experience although it was an oncoming driver and myself both swerving to dodge the same kangaroo (which stopped on the side of the road and checked us both out to see we were OK before hopping off on its merry way). Police report indicated that neither driver was at fault.

[baron-steffan.livejournal.com]

Wow. Glad you're both okay. Concur on auto glass: our passenger side window was broken in a GPS smash-n-grab in Baltimore recently, and pretty much the entire thing was sitting in the passenger seat. But that's the safety-glass plan, after all %^).

[dragonazure.livejournal.com]

Glad to know you are both OK!!!

[siderea]

I'm glad you're OK!

[http://users.livejournal.com/merle_/]

Ouch! Hope you either have a stash on hand, or someone nearby to take you to the doctor and/or help pick up pain killers for you. That sounds like a pretty significant impact (and definitely their fault; there is no way to dodge across two lanes safely). Best wishes for you both.

[tangerinpenguin.livejournal.com]

Ack! Times like this when I do love modern engineering doing its job. Definitely, take care...

[jerusha.livejournal.com]

Yikes! Glad the safety engineering did its job!

[zare-k.livejournal.com]

I'm very glad you're all right. Speaking from experience you may feel pretty unwell tomorrow. Taking ibuprofen in quantity can help somewhat (this is what my doctor advised me to do after both of my accidents). Please do also watch for delayed effects-- I didn't really think of it at the time but I'm pretty sure it took me a couple of years to completely recover from the worst accident.

Hope there are no hassles with insurance etc.

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

Ouch! How very unpleasant for you - and how continuingly disagreeable / inconvenient.

[starmalachite.livejournal.com]

So glad you're both all right. Expect the bruises to turn really interesting colors over the next few weeks.

If you can use them, NSAIDs are your new best friend. Take them *before* you seriously ache. Tylenol is rather worthless for this sort of pain. [/voice of experience]

[unique_name_123]

I am so sorry this happened, but I am glad you well enough to write about it.

[cayeux.livejournal.com]

Holy crap! Best of luck in your legal, medical, & transportational dealings!

[fauxklore]

Yikes! I'm glad you're okay.

[shalmestere.livejournal.com]

!!! What an ordeal--I'm glad neither of you was injured (I assume you've had a doctor check you out...).

[cjsherwood.livejournal.com]

Thanks be to G-d that you're both alright!

And that you were both wearing your seatbelts and that the airbags did what they were supposed to do.

ETA: I'm fifthing the suggestion to get checked out and add it may take a while to manifest... had a friend in a car accident recently who was going to physical therapy for her shoulder as she torqued rather significantly to avoid going into the car in front of her (she got rear-ended by a driver going between 40-50 MPH). No one could understand why there was absolutely no improvement until a new PT came along, did a huge bunch of poking and prodding and discovered the dislocated ribs which were impinging the shoulder. It's something that hadn't occurred to anyone and which would likely not have shown up on standard x-rays.

[ichur72.livejournal.com]

Goodness! I'm glad you're OK. Hope the question of fault resolves itself quickly and smoothly.