Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Report: Dodge Charger saves life of suicide jumper

A 2008 Dodge Charger played the role of lifesaver on Tuesday when a man fell 400 feet and amazingly lived to see another day. The New York Post reports that 22-year-old Thomas Magill allegedly tried to commit suicide by jumping out of a 39-story New York high-rise when the aforementioned Charger broke his fall. Witnesses said that Magill flew through the air at "like 100 miles per hour" and landed on the Charger's rear window.

The man's impact sent glass flying everywhere and even knocked his tennis shoes clear off his feet and onto the windshield of another vehicle. After Magill hit the vehicle, witnesses claim the young man screamed that his legs hurt. Understandably.

While Magill lived through the tremendous fall, he's not out of the woods yet. He is reportedly listed in critical condition at a local New York hospital.

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/09/02/r...uicide-jumper/

Kaydee

lesson learned: A dodge charger is so brittle that for once, a man > a car

syzygy

Assuming the guy has similar mass to the standard 70 kg man and ignoring air resistance, his velocity upon impact is going to be sqrt(2gh) = sqrt(2(10 m/s^2)(120m)) ~= 50 m/s = 111 MPH

(Ug = K ; mgh = (1/2)mv^2 ; gh = (1/2)v^2 ; v = sqrt(2gh))

That's the maximum possible speed in an ideal world with no air resistance. In reality it was probably a little less than that.

Nevertheless, 100 MPH wasn't a bad guess for the witness.

JessePS

Whats next? The guy going to sue Dodge for not making the car more resistant to people

Jetfire

iTrader: (3)

it's like in the movies.

Lil4X

That's an odd place for a crumple zone . . .

LiCelsior

iTrader: (32)

owner of the Charger is mad now because she lost her "baby". shes asking the suicider why out of all the cars in NYC, he had to land on hers.

heard this on the local radio and found it pretty funny.

IS-SV

Yep, just another rerun.

LexJaq

Maybe the jumper didn't want his life saved?

CK6Speed

iTrader: (1)

I'd be pretty upset as well. I believe suicide is wrong and is just a selfish cop out, so my opinion is if you're going to be selfish and kill yourself, try an affect others lives as little as possible.