WILLOWS, CALIFORNIA — A driver who looked away from the road to cough on northbound Interstate 5 near the Willows Rest Area set off a chain-reaction crash involving two big rigs early Wednesday morning. All parties walked away without injury.
Shortly after 5:30 a.m., the driver took his eyes off the road momentarily to cough. When he looked back up, a big rig was directly in front of him. He had no time to stop. His vehicle struck the rear of the truck. The impact disabled his car and knocked out its electrical system, leaving it without functioning lights in the slow lane.
The driver made the right call — he got out of the vehicle and moved to the shoulder. Moments later, a second big rig traveling in the slow lane came upon the darkened, blacked-out Hyundai. The driver did not see it in time. The second truck struck the Hyundai, causing further damage to the car and disabling the big rig in the slow lane.
CHP used the incident as a reminder that even routine bodily functions can become dangerous distractions behind the wheel. “Even natural bodily functions such as coughing can be dangerous distractions that result in tragedy,” CHP said. “Fortunately, in this case, all involved parties walked away without injury.”
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