Miata Mailing List: April 1998, Message #64

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http://www.herald.com/dade/digdocs/036085.htm

Frozen turkeys cause pileup, stop traffic cold

By YVES COLON Herald Staff Writer

Two frozen turkeys launched from a crashing pickup turned into missiles
Tuesday, creating a pileup of swerving rush-hour motorists in Northwest
Miami-Dade, police said.

The pickup was traveling about 55 mph along Northwest 62nd Street about 8
a.m. when it allegedly ran a red light at the 27th Avenue intersection.

``He never applied his brakes,'' said Lena Jean-Baptiste, a Miami-Dade
public service aide who investigated the accident. ``He ran straight
through.''

The pickup hit a Volkswagen Jetta going north on 27th Avenue, spinning it
into the intersection under the Metrorail tracks. The pickup then went
through the intersection, hitting a Nissan Altima traveling southbound.

That's when the turkeys flew out of the back of the pickup.

One of the frozen birds hit the windshield of an older-model Nissan behind
the Altima. The turkey then bounced into another windshield on a Cavalier
convertible in the next lane.

``You can tell where the turkeys landed,'' Jean-Baptiste said.

The driver of the convertible tried to make an evasive move, but instead
pinned another pickup against one of Metrorail's concrete pillars.

``They never saw him coming,'' Jean-Baptiste said. ``He [the pickup driver]
never stopped. No warning, nothing.''

The pickup driver is being charged with running a red light. He was listed
in serious condition, she said.

``Other than that, they're all OK,'' Jean-Baptiste said.

The driver of the Jetta, who is nine months pregnant, was taken to North
Shore Medical Center for observation, Jean-Baptiste said. The others were
taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital with a variety of injuries, including
facial cuts and scratches, she said.

Jean-Baptiste said she could not release names of those involved until
families were notified.

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