Coffee To Blame As Car Drives Into Pond

Source: Savannah Now

“Savannah Now” ran a story this week about a driver losing control of his car and ending up in a Georgia pond. What did the twenty-something driver blame for the loss of control? The coffee did it! Again, another food causes an accident. If it’s not the Twinkie, it’s the coffee. Twinkies have made legal history, becoming a formal line of defense called the “Twinkie Defense”. Now will the “Coffee Defense” join the legal precedence options?

We’ve seen it so many times. The driver in the car ahead of us is drinking a soda, a coffee or other drink. Maybe he or she is also eating breakfast, lunch or dinner. Whatever the meal or drink, the attention is not on the road. They may weave or drive too slowly, but they are becoming a road hazard.

In this particular case, it wasn’t just that the driver was preoccupied with his coffee drink. The fact is, according to him, that he spilled the hot coffee on himself and this caused him to overreact with the steering wheel, causing the car to swerve and take its swan dive.

Many states have laws pertaining to eating or drinking while driving. This story exemplifies the reason for enacting such laws. It’s extremely difficult to multi-task while driving. Even though you may enjoy your ROASTe coffee so much you can’t leave home without it, please put it in a thermos or somewhere to keep it warm but not within reach of your hands while driving. If you go to a drive-through coffee shop, wait for those times you are stopped at red lights or in traffic. And please, do NOT drink coffee and eat a Twinkie while driving. If you must drink and drive, at least put your hot coffee in a no-spill tumbler or cup.

Remember this young man’s story; it’s so easy to suddenly stop or swerve when driving and you don’t want burns from hot coffee or an accident to result. After all, there IS a time and place for everything, and enjoying a ROASTe coffee is one of these.