This Huge Crash Was Caused By A Driver Watching A SpaceX Launch

We’re all only human, as far as we know. None of us is perfect. But when it comes to road safety and observation, complacency can kill.

In dashcam footage uploaded to YouTube, the driver of a car driving on a freeway in California is heard chatting to kids about the bright and clearly visible launch trail from the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch on the night of 22 December.

Then, presumably through sheer distraction, the driver of some kind of minivan fails to see the cars ahead slowing down – probably also looking at the rocket’s trail – and smashes into the back of what seems to be a Toyota Corolla, in turn pushing that hard into a slow-moving Toyota Rav4.

Airbags are clearly visible, covering all the windows in the poor Corolla. The minivan ploughs slowly onwards with the brake lights on but no meaningful deceleration, suggesting an unconscious or at least dazed driver. Meanwhile, the camera car fails to stop to help, despite the seriousness of the hit. Poor form, if you ask us.