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my car, broadsided

On my way home, one Saturday night, I was sitting through the Manila-bound moderately heavy traffic jam along the national highway in Pansol, Calamba. This situation is quite normal during this time of the year because a lot of people troop to the swimming pools and the resorts in an attempt to cool down. 

What wasn't typical this particular Saturday night was the freak accident that I figured into.

Basically, the driver's side of my car took the brunt of the impact; since the other vehicle had passed beyond my line of sight (I was looking in front, as typical drivers do when they wait for the cars in front to move), I didn't see the actual collision. The strength of the impact shook the car enough to make me feel that I was riding The Rialto. The reflection on my left side mirror showed people being thrown off a tricycle behind my car.

Concerned that the passengers were injured, I got off the car, locked it, and then checked if anyone needed help. The barangay tanods instructed me to file a report straightaway. They would take care of getting the details of the tricycle driver and of what happened on the road, they said. So I went back to my car. That's when I saw the HOLES on the doors on the driver's side. I was shocked! According to the subsequent police investigation (off-site, since I was instructed to clear out of the road by the tanods due to the traffic situation), the tricycle was Los Banos-bound when it hit my car. The tanods failed to catch the driver and they mentioned that the tricycle didn't have a plate number. 

*Sigh.*

Here's a look at the damage to my car before I had the holes covered up (to protect against the rain). I took them at home the following day.

hole and scratches on the left passenger door

hole and scratches on the driver's door

In retrospect, I am thankful that the damage wasn't as bad as what is normally seen when a car, being driven on clear roads, hit another car on the side. If a larger vehicle, or a speeding one, had hit my car, I surely would have seen something worse.

To all drivers out on the roads, stay safe. And keep OTHER MOTORISTS safe as well.

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