Believe it or not, this car was actually on the road! It's an extreme example of something many of us are guilty of doing: not taking the time to scrape the ice and/or snow off the entire windshield and windows, and instead scraping a tiny, opening just large enough to peer out of.
This is illegal because it's very dangerous to everyone on the road. Drivers need unfettered peripheral vision out of our entire windshield and windows to operate the vehicle safely.
The good news is no one was hurt when the vehicle above was cruising down an Ontario, Canada, road Tuesday. A police officer spotted the car and promptly pulled it over.
To the officer's surprise, the driver was an 80-year-old man who was too old and weak to clean off the entire car. The officer cleaned off all of the snow from the old man's car and sent him on his way with a $110 ticket for having an obstructed view.
Apparently the man was going for a short drive in to town.
It's too bad someone younger and healthier wasn't looking out for this 80-year-old driver. It would have been nice if he'd had a family member or neighbor checking-in on him to make sure he was okay and had the food, medicine, and heat he needed to stay home until the weather conditions were more conducive for driving.
It's a reminder to those of us to reach out to our elderly family members and neighbors during bad weather, folks who might need help and are too shy to ask for it.
Some parts of the country have a lot of snow right now and others are gearing-up for a whopper of a snowstorm. Some of those areas don't typically get much snow. That means people who aren't used to snow, may attempt activities they soon discover are more than they can handle.
It's important to realize shoveling snow, whether you're removing it from your car, sidewalk or roof, can be extremely dangerous. Nationwide, snow shoveling leads to thousands of injuries and as many as 100 deaths each year, largely from heart attack.
Snow is heavy, and an average snow shoveling involves moving hundreds of pounds of it. That puts an enormous strain on the heart.
Likewise, pushing a heavy snowblower also taxes the heart. To make matters worse, cold weather can increase heart rate and blood pressure. It can make blood clot more easily and constrict arteries, which decreases blood supply.
This is true even in healthy people, but folks over age 40 or who are relatively inactive are at higher risk.
National Safety Council recommends the following tips to shovel safely:
1. Do not shovel after eating or while smoking.
2. Take it slow and stretch out before you begin.
3. Shovel only fresh, powdery snow; it's lighter.
4. Push the snow rather than lifting it.
5. If you do lift it, use a small shovel or only partially fill the shovel.
6. Lift with your legs, not your back.
7. Do not work to the point of exhaustion.
8. Don't pick up that shovel without a doctor's permission if you have a history of heart disease. If you feel tightness in the chest or dizziness, stop immediately. A clear driveway is not worth your life.
Snow Blower Safety tips from the American Society for Surgery of the Hand and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons:
1. If the blower jams, turn it off.
2. Keep your hands away from the moving parts.
3. Do not drink alcohol and use the snow blower.
4. Be aware of the carbon monoxide risk of running a snow blower in an enclosed space.
5. Refuel your snow blower when it is off, never when it is running.