Tragic Deadly Accident on I-77 in South Carolina Involving a Monaco Ambassador RV

[Dr4Film]

 

[John Haggard]

I hope everyone is OK 👌

Doesn't look promising 😕

[Donflem]

Wow unbelievable.🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

[John Haggard]

2 minutes ago, John Haggard said:

I hope everyone is OK 👌

Doesn't look promising 😕

Everytime we visit Visone or see a video like this.

We realize that our beloved RVs are a split second away from being Trashed 🗑 Junk. 🤭🤫

[JDCrow]

Blown steer tire? Would they have to hit something very hard to have the house come off like that? 

[John Haggard]

 

They could have hit a drainage abutment or pole, ditch.

 

17 minutes ago, John Haggard said:

I hope everyone is OK 👌

Doesn't look promising 😕

Everytime we visit Visone or see a video like this.

We realize that our beloved RVs are a split second away from being Trashed 🗑 Junk. 🤭🤫

[ERNIEMA]

Suggest Tyron bands or similar on front tires, replace tires after 7 years, buy Michelins, keep speed 60 - 65 , limit daily mileage, recognize when you should stop driving if sleepy.....  I try to follow these.

 

[Dr4Film]

21 minutes ago, John Haggard said:

They could have hit a drainage abutment or pole, ditch.

The video shows the trees that they hit.

The video shows that it happened next to a rest area on I-77. I travel I-77 when going north for the summer and returning south for the winter. That rest area is near the north end of Chester County in South Carolina just south of Rock Hill. I have used those rest area many times in both directions.

https://www.google.com/maps/search/I-77+Rest+area+in+chester+county/@34.7637657,-81.0363082,614m/data=!3m1!1e3

Edited August 1, 2021 by Dr4Film

[GregOlson]

Sorry but here is the results of the accident. One killed and unfortunately the person was not wearing a seatbelt. Don't know if it would have helped considering the extensive damage

 

https://www.wcnc.com/article/traffic/deadly-rv-crash-chester-county-south-carolina/275-4d1ccc1c-422c-481a-9df9-1e53ae25bc27

[Chuck B 2004 Windsor]

What a tragic event.  Please let us all be mindful of the need for seat belts.  Respectively, Chuck Boros 2004 Windsor

[vito.a]

Very sad indeed.  A tragic loss for this family.  

[Mike H]

That's really scary.  It sure would be interesting to know what the actual cause was and not have a lot of speculation.   At 6:30am it could be a lot of different things from mechanical to medical or even trying to avoid a deer in the road.  It's difficult seeing the entire house coming right off the chassis like that.

[Ivylog]

Only the second time I’ve seen where the house separated from the chassis on a Monaco/Beaver, but it’s a aluminum house bolted to the chassis on rigs below a Dynasty… S-10 chassis are all steel.

[cbr046]

Before 6 am well outside the city so hardly any traffic.  It would still be quite dark and everyone would have their headlights on.  Deer could be active but they usually stay on the shoulder (after hopping the fence).  Looks like Northbound from the shadows.  

But to drive up the embankment far enough to hit the trees, spin a 15 ton RV 180 degrees and completely separate the house from the chassis would take a LOT of speed . . . . . I'll throw sudden cardiac arrest into the speculation pool.

Very sad indeed.  Prayers for the families involved. 

- bob

Edited August 1, 2021 by cbr046

[GregOlson]

37 minutes ago, cbr046 said:

Before 6 am well outside the city so hardly any traffic.  It would still be quite dark and everyone would have their headlights on.  Deer could be active but they usually stay on the shoulder (after hopping the fence).  Looks like Northbound from the shadows.  

But to drive up the embankment far enough to hit the trees, spin a 15 ton RV 180 degrees and completely separate the house from the chassis would take a LOT of speed . . . . . I'll throw sudden cardiac arrest into the speculation pool.

Very sad indeed.  Prayers for the families involved. 

- bob

Even in my own vehicles large or small, I never swerve to avoid any animal. It is just too much risk to hurt yourself in a collision with another vehicle or trees and a ditch. Insurance is cheap, but lives are not. No speculation here just some other advice at what i do.

[Just Jim]

Prayers for the families and everyone else involved.  This can be a VERY traumatic scene to be involved with.  I like to think that perhaps my Dynasty with a steel structure might have performed better but the physics of a heavy moving object hitting a large tree are just not there.  Just be thankful for each day and hug your loved ones tight.

[moxy1962]

Incredible, to tear the superstructure from the frame must have been an incredible amount of force, the tree clearly deflected the coach, how fast would it have had to of been travelling to spin her around and send the chassis backwards another hundred feet from the superstructure, just incredible. I would hope my Dynasty would fair better in a similar collision. I’ve had a steer tire blow if that’s what caused the departure from the road, in my blow out I was able to maintain control at highway speed and get to the shoulder safely, I’ve often wondered if the fact I had a car hauler behind me help maintain control. Regardless sad day for our RV community 😔 

[Ivylog]

It appears the R front tire blew sending the rig up the hill with the L front hitting the trees. The house kept going partially separating from the chassis which bounced back, turning 150 degrees bring the house with it as it separated completely. I don’t understand how the R rear wheel is full of dirt although the grass is disturbed (above the spotlight on the cop car) just before it hit the trees???

[Chuck B 2004 Windsor]

It is evident to me that excessive speed was the problem.  60 mph should be the maximum speed a motor home should travel on the Blvd, including a limited access interstate highway.  I live in Southern Mississippi where I 59 goes through the center of our city.  The speed limit is 75 mph.  Add to that some people want to travel at least 5 mph over the speed limit.  Even in my truck, I never go over 60 mph.  In the past 10 years I have seen several motor home wrecks where the coach leaves the road headed for the nearest ditch or tree.  Not a pretty outcome for the passengers.  One such accident was a coach which had 10 passengers in it.  Almost wiped out an entire family.  Those who survived lives will never be the same.  

If you travel 60 mph, in one hour you would be doing good to travel 60 miles.  70 mph, 70 miles.  Plus the added stress that might come from driving that fast.  For me, half the fun is getting to my destination.  Chuck B 2004 Windsor

[FishAR]

3 minutes ago, Chuck B said:

It is evident to me that excessive speed was the problem.  60 mph should be the maximum speed a motor home should travel on the Blvd, including a limited access interstate highway.  I live in Southern Mississippi where I 59 goes through the center of our city.  The speed limit is 75 mph.  Add to that some people want to travel at least 5 mph over the speed limit.  Even in my truck, I never go over 60 mph.  In the past 10 years I have seen several motor home wrecks where the coach leaves the road headed for the nearest ditch or tree.  Not a pretty outcome for the passengers.  One such accident was a coach which had 10 passengers in it.  Almost wiped out an entire family.  Those who survived lives will never be the same.  

If you travel 60 mph, in one hour you would be doing good to travel 60 miles.  70 mph, 70 miles.  Plus the added stress that might come from driving that fast.  For me, half the fun is getting to my destination.  Chuck B 2004 Windsor

I can't count the number of big pushers that have blown by me doing 80 on my way to Florida while I'm tooling along going 63 mph pulling my big fifth wheel. Some of them pulling full size crew cab trucks.

[John Haggard]

13 minutes ago, FishAR said:

I can't count the number of big pushers that have blown by me doing 80 on my way to Florida while I'm tooling along going 63 mph pulling my big fifth wheel. Some of them pulling full size crew cab trucks.

I like 👍 63 mph 

[Dr4Film]

1 hour ago, Ivylog said:

It appears the R front tire blew sending the rig up the hill with the L front hitting the trees. The house kept going partially separating from the chassis which bounced back, turning 150 degrees bring the house with it as it separated completely. I don’t understand how the R rear wheel is full of dirt although the grass is disturbed (above the spotlight on the cop car) just before it hit the trees???

I agree that the main cause for the coach leaving the highway was the right front tire. You can see in the video numerous SC Highway Patrol looking at that tire.

The coach was traveling southbound according to the news article whereas one posted stated they thought it was traveling northbound based on shadows.

The initial impact obliterated the front cap and most likely caused the house part to breakaway from the chassis. Then due to the mass, weight and momentum of the coach it spun around and since the chassis is heavier and now separated it kept traveling southbound leaving the house part on the side of the road bank.

Regarding the dirt in the right rear dual wheel that could have happened prior to the collision.

I will be passing this location and may even use the rest area on my way back to Florida in October.

Edited August 2, 2021 by Dr4Film

[GregOlson]

25 minutes ago, FishAR said:

I can't count the number of big pushers that have blown by me doing 80 on my way to Florida while I'm tooling along going 63 mph pulling my big fifth wheel. Some of them pulling full size crew cab trucks.

I will be very honest. When I first bought my coach and new to RV life. I was going at the speed limit or higher just like being in my car. But after driving and reading other member posts, i slowed down quite a bit and use TPMS as a another safety feature. But at first I was guilty of being fast.

[moxy1962]

I run between 105 and 110kph, which is max 68 mph, coach seems to cruise well at that speed, just so happens that is 10% below tires recommended speed, for me it is a nice relaxed speed, typically I am one of the slower rigs on the road, when I do get passed by other coaches I’ll admit I shake my head that anyone would drive 70 plus mph in something so big and cumbersome. I have tpms and while I get comfort from some information from it, it never warned  of my failure of front steer tire on I81 northbound few years back 

 

Edited August 2, 2021 by moxy1962

[cbr046]

53 minutes ago, Dr4Film said:

The coach was traveling southbound according to the news article whereas one posted stated they though it was traveling northbound based on shadows.

That was me thinking the videographer was shooting in the morning, which they were.  Unfortunately I got my E-W a little mixed up (or was it N-S?). 

TPMS is a must with rigs like ours. 

  

11 minutes ago, moxy1962 said:

 I have tpms and while I get comfort from some information from it, it never warned  of my failure of front steer tire on I81 northbound few years back

Which TPMS system failed? 

- bob

Edited August 2, 2021 by cbr046