A dashcam video of a recent car accident on Deerfoot Trail [warning: strong language at the end of the video] should be taken as a cautionary tale for all drivers in the Greater Calgary Area: no matter how long you’ve been driving on our winter roads and highways, and no matter how capable you think you are, extra caution is always needed.

Thankfully—and amazingly—no one appears to have been seriously injured in this accident that ultimately involved three vehicles. A fourth vehicle traveling behind the three involved in the accident captured the incident on a dashboard-mounted camera; the video was posted to YouTube and quickly became the top post on the Calgary page of the social media site Reddit.

As the video shows, the vehicles are all traveling southbound on the Deerfoot Trail section of Highway 2. As the forward-most vehicle rounds a curve underneath the Memorial Drive overpass, the driver loses control and the car moves onto the icy shoulder, where the problem only worsens (the dashcam owner says in his video description that he suspects a tire blew out to cause the initial incident, though that cannot be determined from the actual footage).

The car spins across several lanes of traffic and is struck head-on by an oncoming semi—thankfully without a trailer attached; the semi was able to slow considerably before the collision which undoubtedly had an effect on the injury outcome for all concerned. Meanwhile, a third vehicle had moved onto the shoulder to avoid striking the first car when it spun out of control, but appears to have been unable to stop due potentially to the ice covering this non-trafficked portion of the roadway. It eventually strikes the semi before all vehicles involved come to a rest.

Emergency Medical Services reports that two adults were transported from the scene for treatment of minor injuries; Calgary Police were called to the scene but no charges were laid. Given the speed involved, everyone was very lucky to escape without more serious injuries. Other drivers should take note, and avoid driving in lanes that are immediately adjacent to icy patches whenever possible—a very minor mistake that causes even one wheel to drift onto the ice can make you lose control of your vehicle and cause a potentially serious—even a possibly fatal—car accident.

DashCams and Calgary Car Accident Injury Cases

Many of our personal injury clients who were involved in car accidents wonder about the importance of dashcam footage. In response to the viral video of this particular accident, Calgary Police Det. Jody Cross said that dashcam footage is always useful in investigations, though he also notes that it only provides a single perspective on any incident. In personal injury cases, dashcam footage will typically have been viewed and interpreted by the Calgary Police as part of their official investigation and report, where it carries the most importance. It is important to remember that these videos rarely tell the full story, so while they are very useful as evidence they will not necessarily make a case “open and shut.”

If you’ve been involved in a car accident in the Greater Calgary Area and would like a free initial consultation with a personal injury lawyer, please contact our office today.