I read on "The news" that the driver of the vehicle that left the road is 58.

It would be interesting to know, although I doubt we ever will, just what the medical issue was. After all, it is not out of the realm of possibilities that a driver who was texting, or screwing with his radio or GPS, or dropped a cigar in his lap lost control of his vehicle and upon realizing what happened could claim sudden , incapacitating chest pain, or abdominal pain, or a syncopal event. Very hard to disprove those claims.

First of all, my thoughts and prayers go out to the families of all involved. A friend of mine who was caught up in the traffic from this tragic event witnessed a golf cart actually drive across 466A jumping the median and curbs. Talk about a death wish.

Some highly emotional responses here...judgmental too

I'm surprised that some people are surprised that accidents occur. and I'm surprised that some people would confuse an accident with an intentional act.

Given The Villages demographic, while it wouldn't move the needle much, chances of an accident occurring because of a medical emergency or a distracted driver or inattentive driver would be greater here.

We may never know what medical emergency this driver experienced. And as to fault we certainly will not know if this driver had advance warning of a problem, ignored doctors orders or ignored taking needed medicine to control the medical issue. However it is central to the liability issue

The SUV, other than its weight is not a factor

finally this so called freakish accident is more common than many realize...its why they define them as accidents.

I will now bow my head in prayer for the repose of the soul of our deceased resident.

Seriously???? I guess Judge Judy is right, "You can't fix stupid". They're lucky they didn't blow out a sidewall jumping the curb, leaving them sitting ducks in the middle of the highway (westbound lanes, as I understand it the eastbound lanes were tied up)

Good point.....or....IF the jogger had chosen as many do in TV, to walk, he may not have reached the point of impact at the time he did, thus, not placing him in the midst of the carnage!! Jesus....I can't believe how some people get so wrapped around the axle on these things! Wow!

Wow
 

Any time we get in a car, SUV, train, plane, bus, boat we take a chance that something could happen. Accidents happen to people of all ages, we can either live our life or hide your head in the sand and think nothing bad will ever go happen.

Sounds like some people here think golf carts are taking to many risks, maybe we should all go back to the horse and buggy days, but if we did that then we would have a horse sh#$ problem, but by looking at some of these posts we could already have that problem.

I gotta give him a pass if he dropped a lighted cigar in his lap. Ouch!

I was responding to someone implying that a golf cart provided as much protection as a small car. And I'm not sure a smart car on the mmp is "dumb". Let's see. I have seen motorcycles, including a three wheeler, motorized skate boards, licensed street legal nevs...I'm waiting for a motorboat with wheels.

I was thinking of getting a hovercraft:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

Daily Sun just announced that the 2nd person in the golf has passed away.

Thank you for posting this information. This was my point exactly about those who continually bash the "elderly" drivers because they are the ones with medical issues. Anyone, young or old, can die from a "medical event" at any time.

Many times, "elderly" is a perception among younger people. My co-worker's husband was a mechanic. He was commenting one day about an elderly lady who had brought her car in for service. When I asked him just how elderly she was, he replied, "Oh, somewhere around 40 or 45." (I was 42 at the time.) Of course, he promptly assured me that he didn't mean me. I later asked him, after he turned 40 how it felt to be "elderly".:shocked:

Paradise Lost :sad:

So sorry to hear this. Sad that anyone had to die. Condolences to each of their families.:pray:

Yes, very sad to hear of the deaths.

Sure hope the driver of the Escalade has an umbrella policy for a few million dollars. He will be needing it!

That's why I answered yes any car would have done damage. The smart car I just got out of is the same dimensions as our golf carts but can go over 20 mp and has lots more weight

True, any car, even a Smart Car, would do much damage to a golf cart. Just think how the size of the Escalade made it so deadly against a golf cart - but you have to admit it was a freak accident.

Yes, the weight of the Smart Car would add to the safety over a golf cart as well as being enclosed and having the mandatory used seat belts and the airbag.

However, a Smart Car is not allowed on the multi-modal paths - just the same as any other car.

No doubt. But the chance of someone that is 85 years old having some kind of medical episode is much greater than someone who is 25.

The chance of someone 85 years old dying is greater than someone 25.

Anything can happen to anyone at any time. It's a matter of odds.

I am disgusted with the stereotyping of all Villagers as "elderly" drivers who have questionable driving ability, and are stereotyped as more prone to a "medical incident" that causes a deadly accident.

The fact is, a large percentage of heart attack deaths occur without prior knowledge of disease, with sudden death being the first warning sign.

Here is an example, from Cleveland Clinic:

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is a sudden, unexpected death caused by loss of heart function (sudden cardiac arrest).

Sudden cardiac death is the largest cause of natural death in the United States, causing about 325,000 adult deaths in the United States each year.

Sudden cardiac death is responsible for half of all heart disease deaths.

Sudden cardiac death occurs most frequently in adults in their mid-30s to mid-40s, and affects men twice as often as it does women.

Sudden Cardiac Death (Sudden Cardiac Arrest) | Cleveland Clinic

Doc: your right. All one has to do is review the mortality and morbidity tables. Better yet just go to the TOTV archives and resurrect the many threads on the drivers living in TV

If you have not taken an AARP driving course-consider taking it

At the last course we took-the instructor made it very clear--The older you are you are more susceptible to injuries that will kill you--but only injure a younger person

We don't bounce like we used to

Quote from the online newspaper:

"The driver of the Cadillac SUV has been identified as 58-year-old David Martin McCurry of Fruitland Park.'

Better rethink the "age" argument pertaining to this accident.

No, but many of us can still dance, maybe not as long or kick as high but we are still kickin'.


Love this place and being surrounded by very nice old-er people.

Keep kidding yourselves, reality is a hard task master-Nascar drivers survive 200mph & golf cart drivers get killed in 20 mph crashes.

Apples and oranges.

Its not apples & oranges a smart car which has the same foot print as a golf cart---is infinitely safer !!!! And the smart car is cheaper than a lot of the golf carts in the villages

What the...????

You compared NASCAR and golf carts. That is apples and oranges.

The final truth is Golf Carts are death traps-they were and were never designed to driven on public roads & paths in the vicinity of cars and other motor vehicles

Keep drinking the cool aid, if you're not golfing , is being cute and cool more important than being alive or not being a cripple.

If you show your insurance agent your receipt for the course you might receive a discount on your insurance. When I worked for Alstate we used to give a discount but that was a few years ago.

And that would be so wrong unless he was willfully negligent.

...and do you honestly believe that the families of the two women who were killed will not sue?

It is a very good idea to have the umbrella policy with around 3-5 million on it.

The driver of the SUV was in an Escalade so he obviously has plenty that could be wiped out if he does not have lots of liability insurance.

Just reading about this accident in paper and very
Upsetting. The very first thing I want to know is What medical condition this driver had??? If a heart attack, it would be published! If a stroke, why not publish that??

If drugs, that's a whole new ballpark and we as villagers have a right to know if outsiders are coming in here drugged up and killing us. The villages may not want us to know but us residents have a Right to know! Call me a skeptic if u like but I do Not trust the media

My heart and prayers go out to the victims. They seemed like lovely women. May God bless them and their families

Two dead in The Villages after SUV driver loses consciousness, hits two golf carts - Orlando Sentinel

It may or may not be made public record but I doubt if there is any media conspiracy. They probably do not know just yet or there are legal actions in the works. Responsible journalists try to get the facts before putting something out there for the world to see.

They have to know what caused the driver to cause. Heart attack, stroke, etc we would know immediately. Drugs on the other hand, even If prescription overdose would Make villagers angry. The driver was Only 58. Has to make U wonder

Absolutely not true. People need to get the facts before giving legal advice.
You cannot lose your home OR your retirement accounts in
a lawsuit in Florida.

When lawyers are probably going to be involved the press are usually a lot more careful with making statements.

Because the driver was only 58 people want to make wild assumptions about drugs?
Pathetic. Maybe let the man recover before starting the vicious rumors??

Road Traffic Collisions | Forensic Pathology Online

I found this of interest. Part of it covers medical emergencies causing a crash.

I did see the Villages Daily Sun front page coverage of this accident this morning 2/22/2016. Good for them with putting it there as this may stop some people from taking unnecessary risks when getting behind the wheel. My heart goes out the families of both the crash victims as well as the survivors including the SUV driver. That must be a terrible burden to bear no matter what actually caused this crash.

A person's medical history is not a matter of public record to be published in news media, even in the case of auto accidents when the public wants to know. There are legal restrictions regarding use of such information.
Still "medical emergency" is a modern catchphrase of vague meaning similar to "therapy dog". I would expect blood tests done at the hospital would disclose the presence or absence of drugs (prescription or otherwise) or alcohol in the system of the driver. And testing will be done to discover whether conditions known to cause sudden loss of consciousness were present on the driver. This is not accomplished in the spirit of assigning blame to the driver, just a part of a normal investigation as to the cause of the incident. After all there is the possibility "medical emergency" was just an excuse claimed by the passenger in the SUV to cover up some other problem. Remote perhaps, but a possibility nevertheless.