Flipped escape

[Rockhead]

Just saw this on Facebook. No information on who this might be hope all are ok

 

[HarleyD]

What goes around may flip over.

 

[GinoandLinda]

Every RVers nightmare. Hope everyone is okay.

 

[Selkirk]

Yikes! The Coquihalla is a very unforgiving highway.

Fingers crossed that everyone walked away unscathed.

Given the proximity to Chilliwack, I wonder if it was a brand new owner.....

 

[Mike G]

Yikes! The Coquihalla is a very unforgiving highway.

Fingers crossed that everyone walked away unscathed.

Given the proximity to Chilliwack, I wonder if it was a brand new owner.....

Interesting thought. Some new owners are inexperienced at trailer towing. It's a possibility.

 

[Selkirk]

I think the TV is a 4th gen (2011-2022) Jeep Grand Cherokee.....

 

[7Gentex]

E19 it appears?

The plywood showing in front of the gray tank is odd................?

 

[dspratley]

We have had periods of heavy rain from Hope to Merritt in the past 2 days.

 

[Ron in BC]

The plywood showing in front of the gray tank is odd................?

Some folks have done different things to protect the tank from rock damage. Could be that.

I'll see if it makes the local news tonight.

Looks like the LF wheel on the tug is missing. Maybe a factor if it was ripped off by an impact before the flip happened.

Ron

 

[MarkinVan]

Appears that there is no Weight Distribution or Anti-Sway Hitch.

 

[TTMartin]

Looks like the LF wheel on the tug is missing. Maybe a factor if it was ripped off by an impact before the flip happened.

Ron

Yes, that would certainly cause issues.

 

[Centex]

Every RVers nightmare. Hope everyone is okay.

Agree on both counts.

 

[Selkirk]

Appears that there is no Weight Distribution or Anti-Sway Hitch.

Isn't that a WD trunnion bar running alongside the A-frame at the top? I don't see one below though.

To me, it looks like the hitch ball/draw bar is extended quite a distance from the receiver on the tow vehicle....

 

[binarry]

A nightmare surely. One factor is likely the ball hitch, which, when the TT flips, will pull and flip the TV. I use a u-joint hitch (aka fully articulated) ordered from Australia, which hopefully will prevent such flip. The hitch company is no longer operating, but others remain available; very expensive.

 

[Sean Murry]

The Coquihalla is a very good well engineered road, which is why they have a higher speed limit on it versus other BC Highways. However it is still a mountain highway, with unpredictable weather and lots of snow in the winter. Just because you are legally allowed to go 120 kmh doesn't mean you should when pulling a trailer

 

[Ron in BC]

Nope and that's exactly what I told a newbie trailer tower who will be following us up the Coq. tomorrow. I said that most of the time we're doing the speed limit but when it's a 120 we'll be doing our usual 100-105kph.

Ron

 

[bborzell]

Seems like there is little to nothing to be learned from the info currently available about this mishap.

 

[Ron in BC]

No, but that might be a good thing for those involved. There was zero coverage in the local media which likely means that no one was killed or seriously injured.

It might be educational if the reason was known, third party error resulting in a crash, swerving and fishtailing or an error by the driver.

The sort of thing that you hope never happens to yourself.

Ron

 

[Iowa Dave]

Ive discussed accident reconstruction several times with trained investigators in my home town and with a member here on the form. I always come away with a better understanding of mistakes that I have made or a bad habit I need to change. Towing and driving safely affects all of the Escape owning and towing community.
Iowa Dave

 

[Selkirk]

No matter what the circumstances were that pertain to this particular accident, the owners had a very bad day.....

Over the years, I've lost count of the number of occurrences I've witnessed involving tow vehicles/trailers taking unnecessary risk on the highway.

I firmly believe that drivers should require a special towing endorsement on their license before being permitted to tow anything greater than a couple thousand pounds. There should be mandatory training and a road test which covers topics like vehicle capacity/trailer weight, hitching process, basic trailer inspections, impact on vehicle handling, basic maneuvering techniques, emergency procedures, etc.

I know such qualification training won't eliminate all issues, but it would certainly be a step in the right direction.