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Bowmansdale’s hill most dangerous area for drivers |
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Area in Upper Allen Township posses more threat to speeding drivers. By
DEBRA MASSIC |
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MECHANICSBURG, Pa. - Most accidents in Upper Allen Township occur at the bottom of Bowmansdale’s hill, said Sgt. Peter J. Beauduy of the Upper Allen Police Department. He said a few sport utility vehicles flipped over on Bowmansdale’s hill due to speeding drivers. “There is no one type of vehicle that gets in more accidents than others,” said Beauduy, “It depends on the driver.” He said these vehicles tend to flip easier than others because of its body style and smaller cars sustain more damage and injury. Most of the accidents Beauduy covered are minor “fender-benders.” He has yet to cover an accident where someone dies at the scene. There were a few incidents where the victims died at the hospital. “The hardest thing to do is inform the parents that their son or daughter is in the hospital,” he said. He always tells the victim’s parents that their son or daughter is okay even when they are not, “I want them to be able to be calm enough to drive to the hospital,” he said. The most damaging accident Beauduy covered was when a tractor-trailer on Mt. Allen Drive hit another tractor-trailer engulfing it in flames. The driver died in the fire. The most memorable fatal accident he covered was several years ago when a tow-truck hit a bridge at high speed. The driver was under the influence of alcohol and fell asleep. The passenger was sleeping with his arm and head out of the window when the truck hit the supporting wall. Beauduy said the passenger was instantly decapitated, “His head was one place and his shoulder and arm was in another.” In the fog of 1994, there was an 80-vehicle pileup on Rt. 15. Few people were seriously injured. Beauduy was called to the scene. “It was like dead silence and no vehicles,” he said. An officer nearby was covering a minor accident on the highway and became concerned when no vehicles were passing through. Police codes for an accident is “crash, no injury” or “crash, with injury.” It is protocol for officers to have a neck collar and a board in case the victim has a broken neck. The police vehicles are equipped with cameras, flares, traffic cones, and chalk, to document accidents, reconstruct scenes, and block traffic. During injury accidents, police need to secure the scene and divert traffic if necessary. There were 120 reportable accidents and 253 non-reportable accidents in Upper Allen Township in 2003. Reportable accidents involve injuries, which require an ambulance to be present at the scene and police to write a two to six-page report. There were 47 injury accidents and no fatal accidents reported in 2002-2003. Only five accident victims were reported to be under the influence of alcohol. Reportable accidents must have press releases; therefore, reporters are allowed at the scene. However, if the accident is severe, police may tell them to move back. The media are sent to the police supervisor at the scene for information. They are not allowed to videotape license plates or victims until their names have been released to the victim’s family. All children under age 18 cannot be questioned or videotaped by reporters without their parent’s consent. Beauduy has covered over 250 accidents in Upper Allen Township in 14 years as a police officer. He said he sympathizes with parents when he is covering an accident that involves children. “When children are not restrained and they’re not in car seats and they’re bouncing around, it upsets me,” he said, “not only as a police officer but also as a parent.” Most accidents are a result of high speeds, inclement weather, and careless driving. “The faster you go, the less time you have to react,” Beauduy said. He cautions drivers to wear seat belts, go the speed limit, and drive defensively. “Roads are designed to handle vehicles at certain speeds,” he said. All stories in this magazine are the intellectual property of the individual authors. You may email comments about this story to: dlm352@psu.edu
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