Accidents can happen to anyone traveling on the road. Because of our nation’s initiatives to lower our speed limits years ago, our roads are relatively safer now than in years gone by. It is quite likely that you may witness or see an accident at some time in your life. If you are the bystander to an accident with a motorcycle, call for help right away. Many times people come upon an accident and assume that someone else has already called. Just because there is a crowd of onlookers, it doesn’t mean that anyone has called the authorities to notify them of the loss! Don’t be afraid to use your cell phone and give your exact location to the authorities. Just tell them what you see, and help will most likely soon be on the way.
Unless you just happen to be an EMT and have equipment in an ambulance at the ready, you will probably not be able to do more than the basics. You should be traveling with an emergency roadside first aid kit. If you do not have one of these, I strongly suggest that you get one today. They are more than just handy to have around. I also suggest that you carry flares and an old warm blanket. You should also always carry bottled water, granola-type snacks, and paper towels, or old raggedy bath towels. These will come in handier than you ever imagined while on the road, trust me.
For years, when my children were very small, we used to carry around a full change of clothes for all of them, right down to the shoes. We also carried a small tarp (to protect yourself from the elements if you have to do a quick car repair), jumper cables, bungee chords, and a few packages of brand new toys. The toys came in handy when we were on family trips, and were near another parent with an unruly child. Just presenting a new shrink-wrapped packaged safe toy to a harried parent made that person our friend for life. Our trunk always looked as if we were either in a state of flux, preparing for an evacuation, or on a perpetual camping trip. But, we were completely prepared for just about anything, and you should be too.
If the motorcycle driver is on the ground, you can possibly talk to the person and tell him or her that help is on the way. Then, depending on the weather and situation, you may reach into your trunk and take out whatever supplies are needed at the time.
I mention all of this because I have seen two motorcycle accidents myself. The first one, I was making a left turn and the motorcyclist was in front of me. As I completed my turn, the elderly gentleman on the motorcycle made a left turn, then, seemed to change is mind to make a quick U-turn. His bike just slid down to the ground as he miscalculated the turn. He was fine, just a few scrapes, but he was wearing shorts and his legs were bleeding. I offered the use of my first aid kit, but he declined. The police were called and I left once they got there to check him over.
The second motorcycle accident that I witnessed happened in the mid-west in colder snowy weather. The motorcyclist was already on the ground when I happened by the accident scene. I offered the use of my toasty warm blanket and it wasn’t refused. The other drivers who also stopped at the time were all scrambling to their vehicles to take out items that might be of use. Someone took out a box of granola-type treats and shared with everyone present. We all waited until the ambulance came for the young man who, thanks to all of us, was resting quite comfortably on the ground.
As I said, you may be the witness to an accident. You may feel that you just need someone to talk to about what you saw. You can call the law offices of Ledger & Associates at 1-800-300-0001 or email us at www.ledgerlaw.com if you want to discuss liability issues or have questions regarding an accident you may have been involved in recently.
