On the afternoon of Tuesday, January 28, the Paris Police Department was dispatched to an accident around 2:01 p.m. alongside Fire and EMS. This accident occurred at the 5700 block of Bonham Street.
A 73-year-old man named James Edward Fletcher had been traveling westbound on the road in his 2007 Chevy truck when it hydroplaned and crashed head-on with another vehicle. The other vehicle, heading eastbound toward Fletcher, was a 2012 Ford SUV.
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The driver and the passenger of the SUV were transported via ambulance to Paris Regional Medical Center for evaluation and treatment of the injuries sustained in the accident.
The Paris Police Department Investigation Team is currently still investigating the circumstances that lead to the head-on collision.
Hydroplaning occurs when the tires of a vehicle encounter a wet surface that has so much water on it the treads of the tires cannot properly displace it. When they cannot displace this water, they begin to slide and skid, almost as if driving on a patch of ice. It is extremely easy to lose control of a vehicle when this happens.
It is possible that the investigation team will look at the weather or some other physical or natural source for the hydroplaning. The first 10 minutes of a light rain can hold the largest potential for a hydroplaning accident. When the light rain mixes with the oils already on the surface of the road, even speeds of 35 mph can be dangerous.
Vehicle maintenance could also be a factor in this accident. If the tires on the 2007 Chevy truck were not maintained properly it could have increased the risk for the hydroplaning accident. Tires must have proper inflation and be replaced as needed. A part of proper tire maintenance is keeping the tires balanced and rotating them at various intervals during their lifecycle.
Some accidents are unavoidable, but we can learn from the accident that claimed the life of James Fletcher. Proper maintenance of a vehicle and anticipating road conditions can possibly change the outcome of a potentially fatal situation.