When driving back and forth between Blacksburg and Charlottesville weekly for the past two years, I often wondered if anybody had ever driven clear off of the side of Afton Mountain, and whether it would be possible to survive it. Turns out, yes and yes.
As David Hendrick writes in today’s Progress, two people and their dog were pulling onto the scenic overlook up there when they struck the guardrail, flipped, and fell 200 feet down the side of the mountain, ass-over-teakettle. Rescue squads hauled the three back up with rope. Neither of the people were seriously injured, and the dog was “panting in the sun and strolling the scene as the pair were treated.”
How soon we forget the tractor trailer that careened off the mountain at the same spot, almost exactly three years ago. :-) Here’s an account of the events:
“As I was heading to work yesterday on 64, I noticed a strange scene at the
lower scenic overlook. There were two cop cars with their lights
flashing, and the guardrail at the overlook was smashed out. But I
couldn’t tell what happened. Later up the road I saw an ambulance and an
undercover cop in a pickup truck racing, presumably to the overlook.
Well, I watched the local news last night to find out what happened, but
they didn’t cover that story. However, I later found out what happened
from a local website. Apparently a truck had pulled off at the scenic
overlook thinking it was a rest area (nevermind the fact that there are
“Rest Area Closed” signs posted all down the highway). He came in way too
fast, and blew off the edge of the overlook at 55 mph. Their rapid
descent down the ravine was slowed by several trees. Miraculously,
despite the cabin being smashed up, he and his buddy (who was in the
sleeping compartment at the time) were in good condition.
I’ve attached the only picture I could find of it, showing the trailer
being dragged back up the hill.”
Wow, that’s an amazing story. Thanks for the information!