The following are two cases of single-vehicle accidents caused by the drivers taking their eyes off the road or being distracted.
Case 1: Collision with a utility pole resulting in serious injury
[Situation]
At around 2 o'clock on a June afternoon, the driver (20s, female) of a standard-sized passenger car traveling at 55 km/h on a two-lane road took her eyes off the road to press the power window switch, turned the steering wheel unconsciously, leading the car to run off the road to the left, and collided with a utility pole (at the middle of the car front, receiving moderate damage). The collision speed is estimated to have been around 40 km/h.
[Driver's injury]
The driver managed to escape fatal injury thanks to the seat belt, but her face struck the steering wheel and she suffered a fractured eye socket and upper jawbone. (The car was not equipped with airbags.)
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Case 2: Fatal collision with a signpost and a billboard
[Situation]
Past 11 o'clock at night in October, the driver (40s, male) of a standard-sized passenger car became distracted while traveling at 75 km/h on the outside lane of a road with two lanes each way divided by a median strip, and he unconsciously turned the steering wheel. The car mounted the curb on the left, spun and skidded, and then collided with an iron signpost at the rear part of the right side of the car (severely damaged), after which it collided with the iron post of a billboard at the rear part of the left side. The collision speed is estimated to have been around 45 km/h (side impact).
[Driver's injury]
The front airbag was deployed, but the driver, who was not wearing his seat belt, was thrown through the window at a speed equivalent to the collision speed, and he was run over by his own car. He sustained severe injuries to his cerebrum, a skull fracture and other damage that led to his death. (The driver was not intoxicated.)
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