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Old 04-27-2012, 08:35 PM   #1
oilboy2
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Default Highway 63 strikes again....7 dead

Another horrific collision on highway 63 today killed 7. An absolute tradegy that will really spark debate why twinning isn't complete.
Having said that it appears from witnesses unsafe passing on a hill caused this one.

CTV News has learned seven people are dead, and three people were airlifted to hospital in Edmonton after a crash on the highway between Edmonton and Fort McMurray.

RCMP said the survivors, a 34-year-old man, a teenage girl and a young boy suffered serious injuries – Alberta Health Services confirmed all three were in serious condition upon arrival.# The teenaged girl succumbed to her injuries Friday evening.

Last edited by ken0042; 04-27-2012 at 09:41 PM. Reason: Please do not post entire article. Violates copyright
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Old 04-27-2012, 08:41 PM   #2
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Tragic. I would say that Driver error has struck again not the Hwy. Sure twining would be great but as someone who learnt the hard way; people need to slow the fata down and drive a little safer.
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Old 04-27-2012, 09:04 PM   #3
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I'm willing to bet that there was a pair of "balls" hanging on the back end of at least one of those two pickups.

Darwin in action.

Shame that innocents have to bump up the body count.

Every time I get dangerously passed on a single lane highway by (yet another) twenty/thirty-something jagoff with a welding rig (and "balls") on the back of his "Super Duty", I think of news items like this...accidents waiting to happen.

And they do happen.

And people die...horrible deaths.

And it's not the road's fault.
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Old 04-27-2012, 09:17 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bindair Dundat View Post
I'm willing to bet that there was a pair of "balls" hanging on the back end of at least one of those two pickups.

Darwin in action.

Shame that innocents have to bump up the body count.

Every time I get dangerously passed on a single lane highway by (yet another) twenty/thirty-something jagoff with a welding rig (and "balls") on the back of his "Super Duty", I think of news items like this...accidents waiting to happen.

And they do happen.

And people die...horrible deaths.

And it's not the road's fault.
I agree it's not the roads fault, however in a very prosperous province why that road isn't twinned yet is beyond embarrassing . Twinning will never remove the idiots that don't care about anyone but themselves but it could have prevented the deaths of 4 innocent people with 2 more in hospital.
More cops on the road would be a good start.
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Old 04-27-2012, 09:23 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bindair Dundat View Post
I'm willing to bet that there was a pair of "balls" hanging on the back end of at least one of those two pickups.

Darwin in action.

Shame that innocents have to bump up the body count.

Every time I get dangerously passed on a single lane highway by (yet another) twenty/thirty-something jagoff with a welding rig (and "balls") on the back of his "Super Duty", I think of news items like this...accidents waiting to happen.

And they do happen.

And people die...horrible deaths.

And it's not the road's fault.
so what do you think when someone in a car passes you ?
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Old 04-27-2012, 09:58 PM   #6
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Road should have been twinned a few years ago. The amount of traffic is ridiculous and people drive way too fast. The photo on CBC shows no welding truck so there goes the truck balls theory. According to the article the government promised to twin a couple hundred additional km, but has only done 16 in that time. Good job PCs.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmont...y-closure.html

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Old 04-27-2012, 10:15 PM   #7
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According to the article the government promised to twin a couple hundred additional km, but has only done 16 in that time. Good job PCs
Not necessarily defending them, but that 16km distance quoted was nearly 3 years ago (Oct 2009); has any more work been done since then? I remember upgrading the QEII to its current standard took forever as well.
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Old 04-27-2012, 10:30 PM   #8
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Not necessarily defending them, but that 16km distance quoted was nearly 3 years ago (Oct 2009); has any more work been done since then? I remember upgrading the QEII to its current standard took forever as well.
I'm pretty sure the leg just south of fort mac until the 881 turnoff is all that has been completed. They spent last summer repaving that 16km section.
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Old 04-27-2012, 11:22 PM   #9
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Where this happened is in the process of being twinned and has had a lot of work done. Obviously not soon enough though.
What people don't understand is there is a very slim construction made even slimmer when moose are in rutting season. Not to mention most of this area is deep bog making it tougher.
It sounds like the northbound truck was passing on a solid line up a hill. One would imagine this kind of impatience would lead to the same results at some point later.
Even with a twinned highway there is still head on accidents. Just look at the history of highway 2 between Edm and cal to find that out.
Only way to prevent these is to change driving habits. Pretty simple
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Old 04-27-2012, 11:36 PM   #10
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Twinning this highway needs to be a priority of the government.
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Old 04-28-2012, 01:48 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bindair Dundat View Post

it's not the road's fault.
Everybody can get inpatient, if a HWY has a posted speed limit of 100 and your stuck behind an idiot doing 80 for miles upon miles it wears on you. this hwy is a friken nightmare to drive because of that, 10X the amount of traffic on it that was intended for means it's a bad road...period.
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Old 04-28-2012, 02:03 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by oilboy2 View Post
Where this happened is in the process of being twinned and has had a lot of work done. Obviously not soon enough though.
What people don't understand is there is a very slim construction made even slimmer when moose are in rutting season. Not to mention most of this area is deep bog making it tougher.
It sounds like the northbound truck was passing on a solid line up a hill. One would imagine this kind of impatience would lead to the same results at some point later.
Even with a twinned highway there is still head on accidents. Just look at the history of highway 2 between Edm and cal to find that out.
Only way to prevent these is to change driving habits. Pretty simple
Just last week I saw a semi veer left into the ditch in Innisfail on hwy 2(must have fell asleep or something) He hit the wires and like "slow motion" the truck and trailor kind of just layed down in the grass, I was too far back to have been effected if there were no barrier wires but I'll tell you, the hwy was very busy(3 cars hit each other by just being freaked out) and it would have been brutal without those wires. History is bad but I doubt you'll see too many head-on's anymore.
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Old 04-28-2012, 02:23 AM   #13
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Everybody can get inpatient, if a HWY has a posted speed limit of 100 and your stuck behind an idiot doing 80 for miles upon miles it wears on you. this hwy is a friken nightmare to drive because of that, 10X the amount of traffic on it that was intended for means it's a bad road...period.
i deal with this everytime i go back to BC, but you never pass on a blind hill or corner. what a stupid way to get so many people killed
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Old 04-28-2012, 03:23 AM   #14
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i deal with this everytime i go back to BC, but you never pass on a blind hill or corner. what a stupid way to get so many people killed
Don't get me wrong,I agree with you. but that stretch of HWY just breeds frustration with the slow heavy oilfield trucks,lack of passing lanes and sheer amount of traffic on it. It makes the Hanna HWY look like granmas back ally.
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Old 04-28-2012, 07:04 AM   #15
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Highway 63 should have been twinned 10-15 years ago. It's taken the life of two people I know and more to come in sure.

Yes driver error probably doesn't help, but with the amount of traffic and the TYPE of traffic its insane how it's still single lane most of the way.
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Old 04-28-2012, 12:08 PM   #16
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I drive a small chunk of that hiway all of the time going to play golf in Gibbons. it's exactly where the bus got hit a few years ago killing about 8 or so workers from Fort Mac. You can see the memorial of crosses and helmuts if you look for a ball in the trees on one hole beside the hiway.

Last year during our club championship there was a head on between a Jeep GC and a pickup, once again right beside the golf course. I could feel the impact and the sound of the collision is something you don't forget too soon, especially on a nice sunny calm Sunday afternoon. The guy in the Jeep died and I think there was couple in the pickup that lived but one was pretty banged up.

As far as that stretch of road goes, you will get old rural people driving 90 or less and the speed limit is 100, and then it is solid cars coming towards you. It is butal on the nerves. Then you'll definitely get the huge pickups with the bull balls and 4 or 5 hung over 20 somethings trying to get to Fort Mac as quick as possible. Really dangerous road with lots of Aholes passing when they shouldn't be, and old people driving when they sholdn't be.
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Old 04-28-2012, 01:25 PM   #17
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I live in Fort McMurray and have for many years so I've had a lot of experience on that road. There really is nothing wrong with the road, the problem is the fools that use it.

There is a whole lot more traffic on it than there used to be though and twinning it would certainly help, but the fact is it's not right now and you have to drive accordingly.

I constantly hear people from here bragging how quickly they can get to Edmonton. Someone says it's a four and a half hour drive and inevitably some idiot will pipe up with a "pfffff, I can do it in 3".

Young males with too much money, testosterone and bravado that feel invincible 'cause they make a hundred and fifty grand a year is the problem. That group of people - young males - are the highest risk on the roads, it's just a fact. Now put fifty thousand of them in a city with a whole bunch of money and one way out to go spend it. It just stands to reason that there is going to be a higher incidence of stupidity!

I have been passed numerous times up hills, around corners, in driving snow, etc. etc. etc. and it's usually some idiot in a super duty who thinks it just can't happen to him - a common misconception among that group or that he's just damned entitled to it 'cause he makes good money. The sense of entitlement that people up here have is a constant source of amazement to me! They sure think they really are a someone!

Without naming a certain group, you've got a whole bunch of twits up here who came from eff all, have no education, have never had a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of and all of a sudden they are literally showered in money. They're not smart - and by that I don't mean all of them! - but they weren't smart to start with and that's why they were never educated in the first place! The only difference is that now they have means. The money sure as hell doesn't make them smarter, just able to display their stupidity more openly.

Ahhh, now I've got started and could keep on ranting but I'll shut up!
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Old 04-28-2012, 01:27 PM   #18
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I don't think you can compare the area around Goose Hummock to the rest of the highway up to Fort Mac, although admittedly I've never been up to Fort Mac. The area around a Gibbons is just like any other undivided highway IMO.

The problem up north is who is on the roads, what they're driving, and how reckless they drive. I know a guy who bragged about evading the police on 63 by weaving in and out of traffic until the cops dropped the pursuit. Sounds safe. You've got rig rockets being driven by guys with no care for themselves or the public it seems. Such a shame that 7 more people are dead because of careless driving.
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Old 04-28-2012, 01:29 PM   #19
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Originally Posted by schteve_d View Post
I live in Fort McMurray and have for many years so I've had a lot of experience on that road. There really is nothing wrong with the road, the problem is the fools that use it.

There is a whole lot more traffic on it than there used to be though and twinning it would certainly help, but the fact is it's not right now and you have to drive accordingly.

I constantly hear people from here bragging how quickly they can get to Edmonton. Someone says it's a four and a half hour drive and inevitably some idiot will pipe up with a "pfffff, I can do it in 3".

Young males with too much money, testosterone and bravado that feel invincible 'cause they make a hundred and fifty grand a year is the problem. That group of people - young males - are the highest risk on the roads, it's just a fact. Now put fifty thousand of them in a city with a whole bunch of money and one way out to go spend it. It just stands to reason that there is going to be a higher incidence of stupidity!

I have been passed numerous times up hills, around corners, in driving snow, etc. etc. etc. and it's usually some idiot in a super duty who thinks it just can't happen to him - a common misconception among that group or that he's just damned entitled to it 'cause he makes good money. The sense of entitlement that people up here have is a constant source of amazement to me! They sure think they really are a someone!

Without naming a certain group, you've got a whole bunch of twits up here who came from eff all, have no education, have never had a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of and all of a sudden they are literally showered in money. They're not smart - and by that I don't mean all of them! - but they weren't smart to start with and that's why they were never educated in the first place! The only difference is that now they have means. The money sure as hell doesn't make them smarter, just able to display their stupidity more openly.

Ahhh, now I've got started and could keep on ranting but I'll shut up!
Newfies. I said it for you.
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Old 04-28-2012, 01:34 PM   #20
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I know you're talking about Newfies, but I've meet far more ######rs in Fort McMurray from BC.

The road is not fine, how can you possibly say a road with that much traffic, and that kind of traffic is fine.
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