A few weeks ago my daughter was involved in an auto accident as she was driving home from college.  While it didn’t cause a massive pile-up or anything even remotely close to being that severe, it did cause slight damage to the front fender of her car and slight damage to the rear of the car she slid into. 

Did I mention it was snowing at the time of the accident?  Snowing on top of about a half inch thick layer of ice which solidified overnight and most of the morning and by the time she was finally out of class, there was a good two inches of the fluffy white stuff carpeting the roads with no let up in sight (final accumulation totals ended up being approximately 6 inches).   Since the college she attends is in Iowa and located on the hill portion of the metropolitan area, the only way home is down.  There’s no other way; no short cut, no work-around, no gentle incline.  In fact, no matter where you are in that area of town, if you need to get to any one of the bridges that cross the mighty Mississippi into my side of Illinois and are not taking the interstate, the only way is down and believe me when I say those 45 degree angled streets are treacherous in the winter and if it happens to be snowing, the only thing one can do is strap in, take your foot off the gas pedal and hope nobody slides into your lane. 

My daughter saw the car in front of her slide to the left and recover, but as she followed, her car also slid and although she gently tapped the brakes, her car continued to slide, could not recover and hit the car directly in front of her.  As I said earlier, there was minimal damage, probably because she was cruising down the hill at about 8 mph. When the police arrived, no tickets were issued and everyone was glad it wasn’t a lot worse. 

Below are a few things you can do to stay safe while driving on snow and ice covered streets and roadways:

1. Buckle up.  Be certain everyone is wearing their safety belts.

2. Be sure to have window washer fluid.  Falling snow on the windshield can quickly freeze up when temperatures are below freezing.

3. Make certain the defroster is in working condition. 

4. Drive slowly and be extra cautious of other motorists.

5. Never stomp on the brakes, especially when you feel the vehicle sliding.  Hard braking can potentially cause you to lose control of the vehicle.  Gentle tapping on the brakes works best and can prevent them from locking up.

6. Remember to make turns slowly.  Often turning on snow and ice covered streets can cause your vehicle to slide.

7. Be extra cautious changing lanes and allow extra time to do so.

8. Make sure to keep an adequate distance between your vehicle and the vehicle in front of you.  

9. Remember: I you find your vehicle going into a slide don’t panic.  Turn the wheels into the direction of the slide and take your foot off the brake.  As long as you are driving slowly, the vehicle will eventually come out of the slide and allow you to regain control.

10. Be wary when approaching an intersection since vehicles may slide into oncoming or approaching traffic.

11. Watch for pedestrians.  Often they may stand in the street or roadway when the curbs or sidewalks are snow and ice covered.

12. Slush and melting snow and ice can still be a slippery mess, so remember to take it slow and remain cautious when driving.

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