Woman dies after jumping out of runaway Escape

We'd like to caution that this story was referred to us by a reader (thanks, Jeffrey) and comes from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, so its accuracy and/or validity isn't necessarily guaranteed. We assume that if it is true and accurate that national media outlets will likely pick it up in the next day or two. The story involves a Missouri woman who is dead after having jumped out of her Ford Escape because its accelerator pedal became jammed. Both the woman and her 16-year-old son abandoned the vehicle and while the teen suffered minor injuries, his mother died after her head hit the pavement. The article states that Ford recalled 500,000 Escapes made between 2002 and 2004 for similar problems last December, though this particular Escape was not part of the recall.

For whoever out there who doesn't know what to do in the event your accelerator becomes stuck, shift the vehicle into neutral. Your engine will most likely blow, but better it being damaged than you.

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