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Uploaded: Monday, September 24, 2012, 2:55 PM
Driver trapped in three-vehicle crash on Page Mill Road
Firefighters use 'Jaws of Life' to extricate driver following afternoon collision at Hanover Street
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Photos
 
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| A crash involving three vehicles snarled traffic on Page Mill Road Monday afternoon and sent one driver to the hospital, fire officials said.
The collision occurred at Page Mill and Hanover Street at about 12:42 p.m. A black Lexus SUV heading eastbound on Page Mill collided with a green Hyundai sedan that was in the left-turn lane at Hanover on westbound Page Mill, Battalion Chief Chris Woodard said. Witnesses said one of the vehicles might have run a red light, though it was unclear which vehicle was at fault.
A black Chevrolet Silverado hit the back of the Hyundai and the Hyundai became pinned between the traffic signal and the Silverado. Firefighters had to use the "Jaws of Life" to extricate the driver of the Hyundai, a man approximately 65 to 70 years old, Woodard said. The man was taken to Stanford Hospital with what appeared to be moderate injuries, according to Woodard.
The other two drivers did not need medical attention and there were no passengers in any of the vehicles, Woodard said. A Palo Alto police officer was also taken to the hospital when glass got in his eye, Woodard said. The officer was one of the first responders on the scene and attempted to help the trapped driver, he said. — Tyler Hanley Are you receiving Express, our free daily e-mail edition? See a sample and sign-up for Express.
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Posted by Too big, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Sep 24, 2012 at 3:07 pm Look at how much bigger the Silverado is than the Hyundai. The engine is at the level of the back window. No one wants to admit it, but economic fuel efficient cars are not safe when these enormous jacked up vehicles are all over the place.
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Posted by Otto McTronic, a resident of the Barron Park neighborhood, on Sep 24, 2012 at 6:11 pm Those vehicles are more a danger to themselves with the way they roll over at thew slightest encouragement.
To put it realistically though, neither of these vehicles controlled themselves. The danger is and always will be behind the wheel. The rest is completely insignificant once you get these ego driven, aggressive, <self censored> drivers reigned in. The drivers are the problem. Only the drivers are unsafe.
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Posted by musical, a resident of the Palo Verde neighborhood, on Sep 24, 2012 at 8:41 pm I hope everyone fully recovers. The photos are puzzling and maybe after the investigation we'll get a follow-up on the sequence of events. This intersection is one I cross frequently.
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Posted by 100% bicycle commuter, a resident of Los Altos, on Sep 24, 2012 at 9:56 pm I agree with @Too big. Even if everyone were as calm and careful as possible when driving, we all make mistakes. And large cars with vertical, tall grills are a lot worse in many types of impacts than cars with angled, low hoods. Looks like everyone will be ok in this case, so that's good.
I once was hit by a BMW sports car whose driver went straight through a red light as I was bicycling across an intersection on my mature but not stale green. When the car hit, I rolled up onto the hood and then the windshield and off the other side. I was banged up, but I had a lot of ramped surface on which to lose energy and so distribute the energy of the impact. If the car had instead been an SUV or truck with a vertical, tall front, it would have smacked me and that probably would have been it.
Another problem with tall SUVs is drivers can't see over the hood to the ground. I was walking in a narrow crosswalk once and an SUV braked to a rolling stop and then accelerated again, without seeing me at all. (I jumped out of the way.) My conclusion was that once the SUV was close to me, the driver could only see the top of me, and that wasn't enough.
Commercial truck drivers and motorcyclists have to get special licenses. It seems reasonable that drivers of cars over a certain mass and hood height should have to get a special license because I think they require a bit more care in handling than compacts or sedans.
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Posted by Kate, a resident of the College Terrace neighborhood, on Sep 25, 2012 at 7:37 am Great Job PAFD!!! Everyone did an amazing job getting that man out of the car! And handling the accident!
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Posted by Drive carefully., a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Sep 25, 2012 at 10:57 am Cars are two-ton weapons. Please share the road legally and courteously. The person you injure or kill may be yourself.
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Posted by CT resident, a resident of the College Terrace neighborhood, on Sep 25, 2012 at 11:43 am So glad the emergency services were there and did their usual wonderful job! I must say, if you are going to get into difficulties, do it within walking distance of the Fire station. PAFD #2 is right there!
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Posted by Hope, a resident of the Adobe-Meadows neighborhood, on Sep 25, 2012 at 3:20 pm I hope the officer who got glass in his eye is OK.
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Posted by Nora Charles, a resident of Stanford, on Sep 26, 2012 at 12:26 am Great job, PAFD! And I hope the officer will be fine. Hats off to all first responders who face so many dangers each day.
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Posted by daughter, a resident of Menlo Park, on Sep 29, 2012 at 10:23 pm I'm the daughter of the man traped on the small car. He is doing ok so far. Had surgery yesterday to reconstruct and replace pelvic bone and other broken bones. 7 broken ribs and other complications that he has developed thank you all who helped him at the scene and now all the doctors and nurses at Stanford.please everyone drive safe and pay attention to the roads and people around you.
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