[nagdu] Fw: [Njagdu] Disaster averted in downtown SanRafael when Guide Dogstrio escape car on sidewalk -Marin Independent Journal

Thu Jun 13 04:12:24 UTC 2013

This is a really good point. I think that there are some things that we need
to remember when reading articles. We don't have all of the facts. Also,
when we hear something, we should not automatically assume that it means one
thing and completely rule  out all other possibilities. It is certainly
possible that the lady should not have been driving, but that does not mean
that we should say that it was not a car malfunction or something. It could
have been a freak accident that could have happened to anyone. My point is
that we just don't have enough information yet to make any decisive
conclusions.

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Star Gazer
Sent: Wednesday, June 12, 2013 12:17 PM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: [Njagdu] Disaster averted in downtown SanRafael
when Guide Dogstrio escape car on sidewalk -Marin Independent Journal

She may not be dumb. She also may not have been aware how bad her driving
had gotten. 
My grandpa was in a car accident several years back. He's old and the
assumption was that he was too old to be driving. Turns out the car had a
mechanical failure. 
I don't know if that was the case here, or if the woman really shouldn't be
driving. Odds are, her family had concerns, but "taking the keys away" isn't
as easy as it might seem. 

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Portia
Sent: Wednesday, June 12, 2013 9:20 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: [Njagdu] Disaster averted in downtown San Rafael
when Guide Dogstrio escape car on sidewalk - Marin Independent Journal

You know, it's lucky that the lady didnt kill others either. She is really
dumb and should gets her license taken and deserves to have someone who can
drive drive her around and see how she feels.  It disgusts me when people
think they can drive, when they obviously can't.

Portia.

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jun 12, 2013, at 5:54 AM, "Tracy Carcione" <carcione at access.net> wrote:
> 
> And here's another version.  I hope ythe old lady is taken off the road.
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ginger Kutsch
> To: New Jersey Association of Guide Dog Users
> Sent: Wednesday, June 12, 2013 7:53 AM
> Subject: [Njagdu] Disaster averted in downtown San Rafael when Guide 
> Dogstrio escape car on sidewalk - Marin Independent Journal
> 
> 
> Disaster averted in downtown San Rafael when Guide Dogs trio escape 
> car on sidewalk - Marin Independent Journal
> 
> http://www.marinij.com/sanrafael/ci_23439366/disaster-averted-downtown
> -san-rafael-when-guide-dogs
> 
> 
> 
> A mid-morning stroll in downtown San Rafael nearly turned disastrous 
> when
a 93-year-old woman drove backward down a sidewalk, narrowly missing two
employees and a dog from Guide Dogs for the Blind.
> 
> 
> 
> "It was just an unbelievable sight to see something going backwards,
barreling down the sidewalk," said Todd Jurek, a training supervisor for
Guide Dogs for the Blind. He quickly herded the fellow employee and dog out
of harm's way when he noticed the dog jerk its head to look behind them.
> 
> 
> 
> The dramatic scene, captured on video by a private security camera 
> mounted
on a nearby building, can be viewed at www.marinij.com.
> 
> 
> 
> The incident occurred at about 11:30 a.m. Monday, when Jurek and 
> Danielle
Alvarado, an apprentice instructor, were walking on Fourth Street near E
Street with an 18-month-old yellow Labrador retriever, O'Neil.
> 
> 
> 
> Jurek, 48, of Petaluma, said he was spotting Alvarado, who was
blindfolded, and assessing O'Neil's guide dog skills when he noticed O'Neil
turn around to look behind him. When Jurek looked back to see what had
caught O'Neil's attention, he saw a black car headed straight for them.
> 
> 
> 
> The surveillance video shows the three walking down Fourth and then 
> Jurek
running and pushing Alvarado around an E Street corner seconds before a
black car speeds backwards down the sidewalk, smashing a store window and
finally coming to rest on the opposite corner of Fourth and E streets.
> 
> 
> 
> Jurek said he heard the glass window break, but it was O'Neil who 
> turned
his head first to see what was happening.
> 
> 
> 
> "He probably heard the commotion before the window popped," Jurek said.
> 
> 
> 
> As the car tore down the sidewalk, it hit a city bench, nicked a stop
light and barely missed colliding with another car. Jurek said he just
grabbed Alvarado and yelled "go, go, go!" as one of the car's doors came off
and pieces of the vehicle flew everywhere.
> 
> 
> 
> "My thought was, is this car going to continue around the corner and 
> are
its debris going to fly at us?" Jurek said.
> 
> 
> 
> Miraculously, no one was injured in the incident, including the driver 
> and
her passenger, Jurek said.
> 
> 
> 
> San Rafael police Sgt. Raul Aguilar said the driver of the car, a San
Rafael resident, is not suspected of intoxication and did not appear to have
a medical emergency before the incident. 
> 
> 
> 
> The investigation is continuing, but the preliminary theory is that 
> the
woman put the car in reverse instead of forward, and the angle of the wheels
sent her up on the sidewalk, Aguilar said.
> 
> 
> 
> The police department is requesting a reexamination of the woman by 
> the
Department of Motor Vehicles.
> 
> 
> 
> Jurek, who has worked for Guide Dogs for 21 years, called
> 
> 
> 
> the incident a one-in-a-million event in which both the dog and 
> handler
responded correctly - with O'Neil turning back around to help move Alvarado
out of harm's way, and Alvarado not letting go of the dog's leash.
> 
> 
> 
> "You can't train a dog for such a dramatic incident," Jurek said. 
> 
> 
> 
> O'Neil underwent additional traffic training and testing Tuesday, just 
> to
confirm he wasn't traumatized by the incident. Jurek said the courageous
canine is in the midst of his final testing and will soon be protecting one
of the Guide Dog's blind or sight-impaired clients. 
> 
> 
> 
> "He'll get placed with someone likely in the next two or three weeks,"
Jurek said. 
> 
> 
> 
> Contact Megan Hansen via email at mhansen at marinij.com or via Twitter 
> at http://twitter.com/hansenmegan
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----------
> 
> 
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