Watch This Sedan Crash Into a Gas Pump in Maryland
Watch surveillance footage of a car lose control and careen into a gas pump before flipping over.
Call it a good case of bad luck, but things could have been much worse in this roll-over accident. A 64-year-old man from Baltimore, Maryland lost control of his 2007 Mercury Milan before 5 o'clock Monday morning, sending the vehicle careening over a curb and into the gas station parking lot.
Don Karbowniczek, the owner of another gas station across the street in Parkville, Maryland, found the vehicle immediately after the incident occurred. Laying on its roof, the sedan left a trail of destruction and confusion in its wake. Karbowniczek made the assertion that the vehicle went airborne, judging by the marks which the tires left on the ground.
Somehow, the vehicle cleared a light pole, a large vacuum, and even a trash can before making its way right into the pump. The Exxon station owner is perplexed how it not only left those items untouched, but also how it managed to flip over without causing more damage to the surrounding property.
Police aren't quite sure why the vehicle jumped the curb, but indicate that the crash was not related to alcohol. The driver reportedly survived the crash, but was said to be in critical condition after the accident.
Thankfully, nothing caught fire when the vehicle struck the pump. Karbowniczek explains this is due to a safety device on the pump known as a "shear valve", which, as explained in the video below, is a flap that engage once a particular arm on the device is severed. The safety mechanism is designed to stop the flow of fuel in the event of a car crash or other potential hazard.
Despite the injuries to the driver, a far worse disaster could have occurred if the shear valve safety system was not in place. The gas station, which was said to house upwards of 50,000 gallons of fuel, could have caught fire or exploded, resulted in far more casualties.
