Woman Dies, No One Had A Knife

Status
Not open for further replies.
R

red_metallic

Member
Joined
Jun 16, 2007
Messages
61
Location
Northeast USA
Not that I needed a reason to carry one but this incident certainly affirms good reason why you do . A man did try to save her but no one had a knife or any sharp object on them and this poor woman slowly strangled after he scarf got stuck in the treads after she fell. The article does not touch on this aspect at all but his verbal account on the news surely did. He was most distraught as he talked about it. Even worse (but not surprising) was his comment about people walking by pretending not to see anything and of course, not getting themselves involved.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/02/25/woman_dies_in_t_escalator_accident/
 
Wow, can you say "lawsuit"?

Too bad no one had a knife; but in Mass, they may be illegal (anyone know?). But this woman may have been having an MI before she fell. Sounds like the previous incident described by the article maybe could have been prevented by a knife excision.
 
There is usually a button to disable those things. Why did no one have presence of mind to hit it?

I think the cardiac came from the "Oh &^%$ me" though processes in the lady when she fell knowing what is going to happen next. Or maybe she had MI and dropped right there? If that's so, then the Lord took her and she probably didnt suffer.

I have a hole on my knee from an accident versus those things one day. Fortunatley for me it worked out well. But it was my fault, a bit of horseplay cause it on a misstep.

When those things get a bite and start eating a human.... it's not pretty.
 
Too bad no one had a knife; but in Mass, they may be illegal (anyone know?).
Click to expand...

The laws are pretty good with knife carry in MA. No blade length restrictions, apart from in Boston city limits of 2 1/2". You can open carry a fixed blade just fine. Dirks, daggers, and other double edged weapons are illegal, to carry concealed on the body, but thats true of most states. No switchblades are allowed either.

Just more reasons to carry a decent blade around with you.
 
Big fat KBar easy fix problems.

**Flashback to a movie... "Mate... THIS is a KNIFE!" with heavy accent.
 
Nobody wants to get involved now-a-days because they are afraid of being sued.

Couple this with folks being raised different from previous generations. Previous generations were neighborly, were not dressed without a pocket knife, and self reliant . Folks had mindset and skill sets.

Today the gov't is gonna take care of them, somebody else can get sued helping another if they want to and tools (knives, guns) just all by themselves cause all sorts of evil.
 
mechanical failure

A similar incident happened here in a nearby hospital. The building was old.
A doctor wearing a lab coat entered a crowded elevator. The doors closed and he did not recognize the edge of his coat projected in through the doors.

As the elevator rose, his coat snagged on something in the shaft; pulling him up and into the door. Some of the nurses tried rapidly to use their bandage scissors, but he was killed too quickly! And the safety mechanism did not work as it should have.

When ever I enter an elevator and see people inserting their hands to cause the doors to open "as they should," I cringe.

I think a fixed blade has somewhat of an advantage in rapid, sure response in
abrupt instances like these. {Not the hands cited, but say, caught clothing is what I'm refering to.}

We used to be taught in school not to wear long sleeve shirts or neckties when operating a lathe in wood shop, or rings, wrist watches in electrical shop for similar reasons.
 
Yikes, I better start carrying a fast deployment blade instead of my clumsy Leatherman.
Click to expand...

I sent my Leatherman in for warranty repairs a couple months ago and was a little bit surprised how often I needed it while it was gone. I found myself wondering how in the world everybody else I know gets along just fine without having a knife/multi-tool handy. It's like I'm naked without it.

Regarding fast deployment, if yours is like mine (WAVE) you can get that blade out pretty quick, one handed. Just carry it with the hinge side up, so all you have to do is pull it up out of the sheath and flick the blade open with your thumb.
 
That is one reason I ride with thumb close that halt button on those elevators. I expect bad things to happen. And they do.
 
A grandson of a friend died as a result of a car accident when the seat belt would not release and then the car caught fire.
I don't know if he was conscious or not, but the other occupants in the car couldn't free him in time before the flames became too intense.
A knife could have made a difference.
 
Couple this with folks being raised different from previous generations. Previous generations were neighborly, were not dressed without a pocket knife, and self reliant . Folks had mindset and skill sets.
Click to expand...

I am not so sure about that. We see the past through rose-tinted glasses often. The 50s for instance was a time of great violence, hatred and social inequality. About the only thing different nowadays is there is greater mobility and communication. The dark seedy side of life still remains the same. They just as much steal your wallet as help you.
 
Nobody wants to get involved now-a-days because they are afraid of being sued.
Click to expand...

True statement, but wouldn't this be exactly the sort of thing that good samaritan laws are intended to protect against?

Isn't it sort of sad that we even need good samaritan laws?
 
I lived in that area and used that transit system. Boston is a beautiful city full of history.
I found the people to be less than friendly and very anti tool (gun, knife). That no one had a knife, or if they did just kept walking does not surprise me.
Just think Kennedy and Kerry.
 
I travel to Boston regularly and whenever I've asked folks walking on the streets for directions, they've been extremely friendly.
Boston has a reputation for being a very friendly and helpful city to strangers.
College students and younger people seem to be all over the place.
If I had to locate a cutting instrument for emergency use, who really knows how many people would need to be asked in any large city?
And who really knows how long it took for this old women to have irreversible damage done to her by the massive power of the escalator?

A year later, a Beacon Hill man got his coat caught in the escalator at State Street, ensnaring his arm, which had to be amputated.
Click to expand...
 
To relay a true story and not to sound like I'm playing a hero but once at our local mall I was riding one of the escalators up to the food court, when a young girl and her mother were in front of me when the undone laces of the little girl got caught in the steps the little girl looked back and up at me and said "Uh oh" and I just reached down as fast as I could and grabbed the laces
and pulled.... the laces fortunately they were dry and they popped off in my hands
sparing the girl any damage to her foot. I kept walking after I saw she seemed OK, I feared possible litigation and other repercussions but I could not stand to see that little girl in that situation a not do anything to help. Her mother just stood there and watched me and let out a little "Oh". Those escalators can be dangerous with long hanging laces and scarves and ties.
 
What SM said.

A declining culture - or lack of it altogether - certainly does have an effect. My own observations are that there is significantly more indifference to the value of human life. And it's all downhill from there.

--------------------

http://gtr5.com
http://ssunitedstates.org
 
In my car, amongst other things, I carry a Spyderco Rescue knife. It is made for situations like this, and will slice through a seat belt with ease.
 

Attachments

  • rescue.jpg
    rescue.jpg
    57.7 KB · Views: 10
I just can't believe that nobody had even a little Vic classic or a passing woman had a little folding sissors in her purse.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Coyote3855
  • Locked
Carry a knife, save a life.
Replies
13
Views
944
Onward Allusion
O
J
  • Locked
Attacker jumps out of woman's shower - she fights back!
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
whatbrick
W
C
  • Locked
The start of a beautiful friendship.
Replies
9
Views
999
40-82
40-82
5
  • Locked
EK Knife.
Replies
16
Views
2K
rcmodel
R
bikerdoc
  • Locked
Northern grandson is a knife addict
Replies
21
Views
1K
Litlman
L
Back
Top