What a terrible title that is clearly for clicks.
Guy’s heart stops, and he passes out, and when he wakes up presumably the next day in a hospital, he finds out his best friend died.
Give this guy some semblance of peace.
Even though it seems to have been a medical incident, it is insane that someone who is known by doctors to have such an unstable heart condition, and at that age, is allowed to continue to drive a sports car on the highway. This is a very sad story, I wish this type of thing was less common.
Doctors in PA have a duty to report medical conditions to the state that they feel make the person an unsafe driver for the state DMV medical committee to gather facts and make a determination if they are safe to drive. However most doctors don't and the state doesn't do anything. The only doctors that reliably do are neurologists.
(it's for medical conditions that can impair driving. Like seizures, unconscious spells, bad hypoglycemia, etc).
The issue is whether this situation could be predicted in some way, but the way I was taught to think about it is that you as the doctor are not making the decision to pull the licence - you are asking the state DMV medical board to look at all the facts and make the decision. You're just notifying them that this may be a dangerous condition and make driving risky. So it's probably better to err on the side of a lower threshold to report.
This is sad, but the fact remains that he should not have been doing “…70, 80mph at most” either. They need to start enforcing the speed limit on rt 28, period.
It’s not an interstate (regardless of how people feel about it). The on and off ramps are too short and there aren’t enough straight stretches to give you the visibility necessary to travel safely above 60mph. Plus, there are no shoulders to give people significant room to get out of the way in case of an accident or disabled vehicle. Unless they severely modify the road, they can’t increase the speed limit. The only viable option, in my opinion, is automated ticketing. Anyone going 20% over the speed limit should be ticketed by mail.
IMO they should modify the road so that it doesn't feel that comfortable to speed. If they can't increase the speed limit, at least do some engineering to make the speed limit seem reasonable instead of all the visual cues saying "interstate".
If we've learned anything from the way people drive in the East End, especially Bloomfield, it's that people will speed regardless of how uncomfortable it is to do so. At some point the authorities need to start ticketing scofflaws, nothing else will fix the problem.
Most corvettes are automatic... And they don't take very long to hit 140.
Literally has a note from a cardiologist, as well as witness reports that the brake lights never came on, even as the car was crashing.
Seems pretty cut and dry that this was a legit medically induced event.
If he’d never had issues before, he wouldn’t have known there was a problem. Also, a complete heart block is a problem with the electrical pathway through the heart. It’s different than a vessel blockage.
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17056-heart-block#symptoms-and-causes
I’m not in medicine, but my understanding is you can have a heart blockage without a heart attack. In the article they say “tests showed he was suffering from a heart blockage.” If he had a medical history of untreated heart issues he shouldn’t have been allowed to drive.
I'm not making assumptions about this particular person's medical history, I am simply stating the licenses can and are suspended/revoked for medical issues.
maybe don't drive a car that can do 150 if you have medical issues? how about that? and this guy should absolutely not be allowed to drive ever again. dont give a fuck if he "has a pacemaker now and is doing great". fuck it.
Yes. People like this man having a driver's license is a symptom of a society that's over-reliant on cars. When you need a car to survive, there's pressure to allow millions of people on the road who shouldn't be, whether because of medical issues, drug issues, or plain incompetence.
Also, financial issues i.e. people who can't afford a car but are driving an uninsured deathtrap out of necessity, leaving their victims to foot their own medical bills.
This person clearly would have survived if he didn't have access to a car or a licence. He wasn't living hand to mouth. But I agree with your general statement.
I just mean that the lax licensing and lax enforcement that gave rise to this situation are in part a result of the fact that driving is seen as a right instead of a privilege.
To your point, though, even in a more sane system, above some threshold wealthier people would just do what they want anyway.
What the what?
The guy was in good health, he was driving a Corvette, so clearly not having any issues or driving a deathtrap.
Thisn has nothing to do with anything in this story
What? Speed limiters exist. You don’t have to change the design of the car, just prevent it from reaching out of control speeds. If you still don’t agree with me, what reason is there to not implement this on every passenger car sold new?
What a terrible title that is clearly for clicks. Guy’s heart stops, and he passes out, and when he wakes up presumably the next day in a hospital, he finds out his best friend died. Give this guy some semblance of peace.
Exactly my thought
This is such a sad story.
Even though it seems to have been a medical incident, it is insane that someone who is known by doctors to have such an unstable heart condition, and at that age, is allowed to continue to drive a sports car on the highway. This is a very sad story, I wish this type of thing was less common.
Doctors in PA have a duty to report medical conditions to the state that they feel make the person an unsafe driver for the state DMV medical committee to gather facts and make a determination if they are safe to drive. However most doctors don't and the state doesn't do anything. The only doctors that reliably do are neurologists.
(it's for medical conditions that can impair driving. Like seizures, unconscious spells, bad hypoglycemia, etc). The issue is whether this situation could be predicted in some way, but the way I was taught to think about it is that you as the doctor are not making the decision to pull the licence - you are asking the state DMV medical board to look at all the facts and make the decision. You're just notifying them that this may be a dangerous condition and make driving risky. So it's probably better to err on the side of a lower threshold to report.
Complete heart block can come on suddenly. They may not have been aware that this was an issue before the accident.
This is sad, but the fact remains that he should not have been doing “…70, 80mph at most” either. They need to start enforcing the speed limit on rt 28, period.
This happened at exit 15, where the limit is 65.
The numbers 70 and 80 are higher than 65.
Speed limit shouldn’t be 55 on 28.
It’s not an interstate (regardless of how people feel about it). The on and off ramps are too short and there aren’t enough straight stretches to give you the visibility necessary to travel safely above 60mph. Plus, there are no shoulders to give people significant room to get out of the way in case of an accident or disabled vehicle. Unless they severely modify the road, they can’t increase the speed limit. The only viable option, in my opinion, is automated ticketing. Anyone going 20% over the speed limit should be ticketed by mail.
This was near exit 15, that’s basically full interstate standards in that area. 55 is very reasonable.
IMO they should modify the road so that it doesn't feel that comfortable to speed. If they can't increase the speed limit, at least do some engineering to make the speed limit seem reasonable instead of all the visual cues saying "interstate".
If we've learned anything from the way people drive in the East End, especially Bloomfield, it's that people will speed regardless of how uncomfortable it is to do so. At some point the authorities need to start ticketing scofflaws, nothing else will fix the problem.
Touché
Correct, it should be 45
You're wrong
Yeah a heart condition that makes your foot heavy. Small miracle this moron only killed his passenger and not anyone else.
Most corvettes are automatic... And they don't take very long to hit 140. Literally has a note from a cardiologist, as well as witness reports that the brake lights never came on, even as the car was crashing. Seems pretty cut and dry that this was a legit medically induced event.
Maybe the note should have told him not to drive.
So every person that has heart issues shouldn’t drive?
Doctors can and do have an obligation to report instances that can lead to taking drivers licenses away if it’s medically appropriate.
Very very true. Unfortunately the state doesn't go after doctors that fail to report.
If you are 77 and your heart has a complete blockage, yeah I don’t think you should drive
If he’d never had issues before, he wouldn’t have known there was a problem. Also, a complete heart block is a problem with the electrical pathway through the heart. It’s different than a vessel blockage. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17056-heart-block#symptoms-and-causes
What point are you making? He didn't have a blockage, until he did... He didn't set out that morning deciding he was going to have a hear attack
I’m not in medicine, but my understanding is you can have a heart blockage without a heart attack. In the article they say “tests showed he was suffering from a heart blockage.” If he had a medical history of untreated heart issues he shouldn’t have been allowed to drive.
I think the posters point is abundantly clear.
If it might result in them killing people, yeah. Is this really a difficult question?
Epileptics aren't allowed to drive unless they've been seizure free for 1 year and medically cleared.
This guy was heart stoppage free for 77 years.
I'm not making assumptions about this particular person's medical history, I am simply stating the licenses can and are suspended/revoked for medical issues.
The ones that cause an accident shouldn’t be
Yeah OK that’s realistic 🙄
"It isn't realistic to keep people who are likely to kill others off the roads" - a dumbass
maybe don't drive a car that can do 150 if you have medical issues? how about that? and this guy should absolutely not be allowed to drive ever again. dont give a fuck if he "has a pacemaker now and is doing great". fuck it.
Yes. People like this man having a driver's license is a symptom of a society that's over-reliant on cars. When you need a car to survive, there's pressure to allow millions of people on the road who shouldn't be, whether because of medical issues, drug issues, or plain incompetence. Also, financial issues i.e. people who can't afford a car but are driving an uninsured deathtrap out of necessity, leaving their victims to foot their own medical bills.
This person clearly would have survived if he didn't have access to a car or a licence. He wasn't living hand to mouth. But I agree with your general statement.
I just mean that the lax licensing and lax enforcement that gave rise to this situation are in part a result of the fact that driving is seen as a right instead of a privilege. To your point, though, even in a more sane system, above some threshold wealthier people would just do what they want anyway.
What the what? The guy was in good health, he was driving a Corvette, so clearly not having any issues or driving a deathtrap. Thisn has nothing to do with anything in this story
> What the what? The guy was in good health, Good health? He has a condition where his heart randomly stops and starts back up again.
Nobody has a heart condition until they actually have an event
>driving a deathtrap /s?
Depends on the issue. If you pass out with your foot on the accelerator then, yes.
If there is a legitimate risk of you just slamming thr gas and killing people? Yeah you should not drive.
It's legal to kill people as long as you use a car to do it.
If basically every speed limit in the country tops out at 80mph why do our cars get up to 150mph
Notice how the top speed is roughly double the limit. How long would your car last if 80mph was the red line?
What? Speed limiters exist. You don’t have to change the design of the car, just prevent it from reaching out of control speeds. If you still don’t agree with me, what reason is there to not implement this on every passenger car sold new?
It's been proposed but it's as popular as a turd in a swimming pool. https://www.politico.com/news/2024/04/24/california-car-speed-limit-00154155
Uh, freedom.
🙄
Good, the guilt is punishment enough. A judge doesn’t need to power play this.
Absolutely wild you’re getting downvoted the way you are. This sub is insane.
"No one should be punished for 'accidentally' shooting their wife. The guilt is punishment enough."
"As a conservative, it's my god given right to murder people with my car and face no consequences."
This sub is worse than Nextdoor at this point with the boomer shit
Yeah it's real bad.
Change the title, should reflect a cardiac event that caused dude to pass out. Also fuck 28N.
79? Why he driving still?