deaths continue more than a year after Jeep recall

canada goose black friday sale DETROIT As Kayla White slowed her SUV behind two other cars to exit a suburban Detroit freeway on Veterans Day, it was rammed from behind by a Cadillac STS. Her red 2003 Jeep Liberty bounced off a Nissan in front of it, canada goose outlet los angeles rolled onto its side canada goose outlet new york and exploded in flames. canada goose black friday sale

goose outlet canada canada goose outlet toronto Other drivers ran to help but were forced back by the heat. Firefighters arrived in just three minutes but were too late. White, a 23 year old restaurant canada goose outlet canada hostess who was eight months pregnant, died of burns and smoke inhalation. safety regulators. But only 12 per cent of the canada goose womens outlet SUVs have been repaired in the 18 months since the recall, a much slower pace than usual. And White Jeep was not among those fixed. goose outlet canada

canada goose outlet online Last week, prosecutors charged the Cadillac driver with committing canada goose outlet vip a moving violation that caused a death. But safety advocates and the lawyer for White family canada goose outlet florida say the blame belongs as much, if not more, on Chrysler and an auto industry safety system that moves too slowly to prevent tragedy. canada canada goose shop uk goose outlet online

canada goose outlet toronto factory The rear mounted tanks have little structure to protect them if struck from behind, making them susceptible to punctures and fires. Moving the gas tank in front of the axle would be expensive and difficult. So Chrysler remedy involved installing trailer hitches on the rear of the Jeeps canada goose outlet winnipeg address as an extra layer of protection. canada goose outlet toronto factory

canada goose outlet shop Government testing showed the hitches protected the tanks in crashes up to 40 mph when stationary Jeeps were hit canada goose parka outlet from behind. But at higher speeds, they wouldn help. canada goose outlet shop

canada goose outlet new york city White tried to get the repair done a few weeks before her death but was told by a Jeep dealer that parts weren available, according to Gerald Thurswell, her family lawyer. He wouldn identify the dealership, and his contention could not be independently verified by The Associated Press. canada goose outlet new york city

canada goose outlet uk sale Thurswell contends the gas tank ruptured, spilling fuel https://www.topparka.ca that touched off the fire. canada goose outlet canada goose outlet germany uk sale

canada goose outlet nyc A Chrysler spokesman expressed sympathy to White family but said the company had no written proof that she asked a dealer about the canada goose outlet jackets recall. canada goose outlet nyc

canada goose jacket outlet READ MORE:5 major rental car companies agree to stop renting, selling vehicles in safety recalls canada goose jacket outlet

canada goose outlet jackets Two crash reconstruction experts interviewed canada goose outlet vancouver by the AP say gas wouldn have spilled from White Jeep if the tank had been mounted in front of the rear axle. Both say a hitch might have prevented the tank from being damaged, but because both vehicles were in motion, neither expert could say for sure. canada goose outlet jackets

canada goose outlet canada Jessica Cooper, the prosecutor in suburban Oakland County, says the Cadillac driver, Clarence canada goose outlet montreal Heath, wasn speeding, canada goose outlet online uk meaning he was driving canada goose clothing uk 70 mph or less. One of the other drivers involved in the accident told the AP that the vehicles ahead of Heath were going about 50 mph. canada goose outlet canada

canada goose outlet parka Other canada goose jacket uk Jeep owners have reported difficulties in getting repairs done. Since canada goose outlet us the recall was announced, more than 840 people complained to the government that Chrysler dealers didn have hitches available, according to an AP canada goose outlet in toronto review of a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration database. Some complaints came as recently as December and January. canada goose outlet parka

canada goose outlet As of Jan. 14, Chrysler had repaired only 12 per cent of the Jeeps despite two letters from NHTSA demanding faster action. That leaves more than 1.3 million Jeeps still on the road with canada goose outlet in uk gas tanks in a vulnerable position. canada goose outlet

Chrysler acknowledges that it normally completes 78 per cent of repairs in 18 months. The company is offering Jeep owners free oil changes and $150 gift cards for parts and accessories as an incentive to get a hitch. But Chrysler canada goose outlet belgium cautions that in recalls such as this, owners can be harder to canada goose outlet michigan find because the vehicles are up canada goose outlet trillium parka black to 22 years old

canada goose outlet online uk Reports of Jeep fires started in the late 1990s, but NHTSA didn start investigating until more than a decade later, in the summer of 2010. Three years canada goose outlet sale later, the agency sought a recall of 2.7 million older model Jeep Grand Cherokees and Libertys some dating back to the 1993 model year after finding 51 fire related deaths. That number was later raised to 75. canada goose outlet online uk

canada goose outlet reviews But Chrysler resisted, and the company sent data to NHTSA showing that 24 comparable SUVs made by other automakers had higher rates of fire deaths in rear end crashes. Both sides agreed that Chrysler would recall 1.56 million of the Jeeps. The remaining 1.2 million would get inspections and perhaps no repairs at all. canada goose outlet reviews

canada goose outlet store uk is the recall Chrysler never wanted to do, says Clarence Ditlow, head of the non profit Center for Auto Safety, whose 2009 petition prompted NHTSA to start its investigation. minimum amount that we gotten to date has been dragging, kicking and screaming. to a document submitted to regulators in 2012, Chrysler has faced more than 40 lawsuits and legal claims over the Jeeps, settling many out of court. A lawyer in one of the cases even warned NHTSA of the Jeep problem in a 2003 letter, after settling with Chrysler. canada goose outlet store uk

canada goose factory outlet Thurswell, the White family lawyer, says he plans to sue canada goose outlet online Chrysler. He says the recall notice from Chrysler gives no sense that car could explode and you could be burned to death. the recall notice, Chrysler says there is a chance the fuel tank can leak in certain rear end collisions. Further, it says, leakage in the presence of an ignition source canada goose outlet parka can result in a fire. says six people, including White, have died since the recall was announced. canada goose factory outlet

canada goose outlet black friday For its part, NHTSA says it canada goose outlet shop typically watches complaint data and crash reports to make sure a recall is working. In the Jeep case, the agency has no evidence that the trailer hitches aren working, a spokesman says. It has no reports of fires or deaths in Jeeps with the hitches. canada goose outlet black friday

canada goose outlet Canada Goose Outlet in usa When White crash happened, she was heading to her evening shift job at an Italian restaurant. Yan Bai was two canada goose jacket outlet cars ahead when White Jeep pushed the Nissan into the back of Bai SUV. Bai got out and saw the Jeep in flames, and knew someone was trapped inside. canada goose outlet in usa

canada goose outlet sale was something really horrible to watch, says Bai, who estimates she was travelling 50 mph or canada goose outlet uk sale a little less before the crash. canada goose outlet sale

official canada goose outlet No one else was seriously hurt. Police say Heath, 70, told them he wasn paying attention. official canada goose outlet

canada goose outlet uk Heath had no alcohol in his system and wasn texting or distracted by his cellphone, says Cooper, the prosecutor. He faces up to a year in jail. Cooper says White tragic death was the result of Heath careless driving. canada goose outlet uk

canada goose outlet store But Douglas Hampton, Heath attorney, isn so sure. He has more investigating to do but will probably argue that White death was canada goose uk site caused by the vulnerable fuel tank and that Heath shouldn be charged with causing her death canada goose outlet store.