CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A stalled car caused a majorcrash over the weekend on SPID. The incident raises the question: What should you do if your vehicle stalls?
A vehicle with two women, two teenagers, and three children inside stalled on the on-ramp westbound from Weber Road on Sunday. The two women who exited the vehicle were struck by another car entering the westbound ramp. Safety Education Sgt for DPS Corpus Christi Sgt. Rob Mallory shared some tips on what to do if you find yourself in a similar situation.
“You want to remain calm to think through the problem you’re facing right now,” Mallory said.
First things first. Make yourself visible.
“Activate your hazard lights. Every vehicle manufacturer is different but you should know where they’re located. Its the red triangle, go ahead and press that button,” Mallory said.
Next, there are a few options. If you have a roadside emergency kit, use it with caution.
“If you have flares or emergency triangles use them if it’s safe to set them out. The more visual signals you give to everyone else that you’re in distress the better you’ll be,” Mallory said.
If you don’t have a roadside emergency kit, you can choose to stay in the vehicle or get out. If you stay in the vehicle, continue making yourself visible.
“Another good indicator is to pop your hood. And if you decide to wait inside the vehicle, put your seatbelt on,” Mallory said.
If traffic where your car has stalled isn’t that bad and you choose to get out of your vehicle, find an open shoulder.
“You obviously don’t want to be standing in front of your car or behind your car. You want to stand as far to the side as you can be,” Mallory said.
But whether you choose to stay in the vehicle or get out, you should always call for help right away.
“Use your cell phone to contact local law enforcement as quickly as possible, let them know you’re broken down, where you’re at. Try to be as specific as possible, landmarks, address. Have those numbers saved on your phone. You can also check your ID card for the roadside emergency number but that might take some time,” Mallory said.
Sgt. Mallory said while these are all general tips, the most important thing is to be aware of your surroundings.
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