Falling asleep at the wheel: Far more cases than reported, says accident prevention doc

[webfact]

Thai Caption: Sign: Sleepy, stop and rest. "Microsleep" - in the blink of an eye like falling ten stories

 

Daily News reported on a condition that is featuring in more and more reports of accidents in Thailand.

 

Falling asleep at the wheel or microsleep. This is known as "lap nai" in Thai and there are signs up all over the kingdom on main roads warning people to take rests if they are drowsy.

 

The signs are always in Thai.

 

Picture: Daily News

 

Dr Manoon Leechawaengwong warned the public through a Zoom meeting with the press as fallout from accidents on the Thai roads at Songkran settled. 

 

He fronts an accident prevention group.

 

He said that most people need 8 hours sleep and when they don't get it the body has to compensate. 

 

Most people's body clocks mean they will be susceptible to microsleep during the daylight hours of 2-4pm. 

 

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Picture: Daily News

 

Signs are persistent yawning, eyes tending to close, moving around on the road and general disorientation.

 

If fellow road users see cars veering off a straight line they should sound their horn 2-3 times to alert the driver.

 

Don't flash lights as that is pointless, said the doctor.

 

When confronted with symptoms of microsleep you should stop, have a coffee and rest. You should try and sleep for 10-15 minutes.

 

Not longer, because that will just make you more drowsy. 

 

If you can sleep for a few minutes then you'll be good to drive on for hours. 

 

Most microsleep accidents are one vehicle affairs on straight roads with the driver veering off line into trees, roadside signs and poles and even into the back of trucks.

 

The condition can also occur during boring spells in traffic when singing or chewing gum might help.

 

Dr Manoon said that official figures many years ago suggested that microsleep was responsible for 4% of accidents.

 

This has now been revised to about 7-8% but he believes this is still too low to reflect the real incidence of "lap nai".

 

He said that many accidents are put down to speed or other reasons when really it was microsleep.

 

He believed that in the USA the authorities think that 21% of accidents were caused by microsleep and in Europe it is between 20 and 25%.

 

Picture: Daily News

 

He said that with microsleep drivers are literally a blink of the eye away from death. 

 

Travelling at a speed of only 90 kmph and dropping off for 4 seconds the vehicle will travel 100 meters.

 

A collision at a speed like this will be the same as falling ten floors to the ground and result in death almost 100% of the time. 

 

The condition affects truckers, car and bus drivers and motorcyclists to varying degrees. 

 

The doctor said the key was to sleep for 8 hours every day, not just the day before a road trip. 

 

He said that when he was a student in America there was a case where a driver who killed a child during a microsleep episode was acquitted. 

 

But the mother of the victim fought the case and the court revised its decision as it was later proven that the driver should be held responsible for not being fit to drive. 

 

He hoped that this would soon be the case in Thailand. 

 

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[DezLez]

I nearly dozed off reading it!

[ezzra]

And how did the good doctor came to this conclusion? did he had a study or experiments done to determent that this is the cause of most road accidents? did he differentiate between ordinary drivers or those on long hauls?...

[Gold Star]

If everyone sounded their horns when they saw drivers veering out of their lanes, Thailand would be louder than India.

[law ling]

1. Falling asleep is also, seemingly, an accepted excuse to explain an accident - whatever may have been the cause.

 

2. For night-driving, I find many roads here have neither street lights nor reflectors (marking the lanes and shoulders) - leaving you to drive often in a near-black-void (other than what your headlights, or other traffic, may show up) ... giving your mind too little to concentrate and focus on.

[hkt83100]

20 minutes ago, Gold Star said:

If everyone sounded their horns when they saw drivers veering out of their lanes, Thailand would be louder than India.

This should be roughly the sound level of Saigon. ????

[georgey]

Interesting that, according to him, this phenomenon should be responsible for approx only one third of the accidents for which it is considered responsible in US & Europe. Maybe Thais are better at it, or their microsleep is more micro than elsewhere....

[Pawpcorn]

I'll testify to this!

 

Many times, when trying to drive when exhausted... My brain just shut down for a few seconds!

It's quite terrifying, too!

 

I think their signs should be in English too, <deleted>.

[Jimbo2014]

Thai's also suffer from a driving condition known in the medical community as "moronicus idiotus drivingus"

[Lacessit]

The three most common factors in traffic accidents are speed, alcohol, and fatigue.

Courtesy of 60 years of driving experience, I deal with the fatigue factor by pulling over to a safe position, putting the seat back, and having a nap for 10-15 minutes. It's amazing how even that short time can refresh me.

Can't say it was part of my training for a Thai driving license, all I had to do was look at a traffic light.

[vandeventer]

This falling asleep at the wheel only happen to me once in Australia. When I woke up I was on a better road going the same way.

[sawadee1947]

1 hour ago, ezzra said:

And how did the good doctor came to this conclusion? did he had a study or experiments done to determent that this is the cause of most road accidents? did he differentiate between ordinary drivers or those on long hauls?...

I think it's Common sense.

In Thailand there are No regulations and laws enforcements about working behind the wheel as in Western Countries.

So here you can drive the whole day. And after enjoying your Ganja in the evening start driving again in the morning after maybe 5 hours.

For private drivers it's the same ????

[sawadee1947]

1 minute ago, vandeventer said:

This falling asleep at the wheel only happen to me once in Australia. When I woke up I was on a better road going the same way.

And who was driving then ????

[Pedrogaz]

What data does he have to suggest that the 'true' incidence is higher than the reported incidence?????

[hotchilli]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Most people's body clocks mean they will be susceptible to microsleep during the daylight hours of 2-4pm

Most Thais I know that drive can lap nai at anytime 24/7

[hotchilli]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

If fellow road users see cars veering off a straight line they should sound their horn 2-3 times to alert the driver.

And he heads the team?

[RichardColeman]

1 hour ago, Pawpcorn said:

I'll testify to this!

 

Many times, when trying to drive when exhausted... My brain just shut down for a few seconds!

It's quite terrifying, too!

Darwin is trying to tell you something I think

[zzaa09]

1 hour ago, hkt83100 said:

This should be roughly the sound level of Saigon. ????

New York City, Shanghai, Mexico City, Cairo, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Sydney, etc...

Appears to be universal withholding the comparative forms. 

[petertucker48]

Long hours 7 days a week = accident/death.

Time the Employers began to Think!!

[Aussieroaming]

Thanks Dr Daft, Thailand and the world will be a safer place now that you have shared your PHD Level study on identifying and managing microsleep whilst driving.

[KanchanaburiGuy]

The micro-sleep issue is real. So are the accidents, injuries, property damage, and deaths they cause. 

 

20 years ago, I was fairly well known in Washington State as a sleep awareness activist. I was invited to many High Schools around the state to give one hour presentations on sleep and its importance to safe driving. The audience was kids who were just beginning their adventures in driving: Drivers' Education Classes. 

 

Micro-sleeps---awareness of them, how to avoid them, what to do about them--were perhaps the single most important part of those classes. 

 

"60 miles per hour. You nod off for just one second. ONE SECOND! That means your car will travel 88 feet with no one driving the car! 

 

"88 feet is enough to drive across 4 lanes of traffic, or smack head-on---at full speed---into someone going the opposite way!" 

 

If I remember correctly, something like 90% of long-haul truck drivers admitted to having at least one "head drop" while they were driving, in the preceding year. 

 

The thing about a "head drop" is........... 

 

It doesn't mean you are falling asleep. It means you ARE asleep! 

 

A 40-50,000 pound truck barreling down the highway............ with no one driving! 

 

Micro-sleeps are a big deal. 

 

Personally, I am incredibly grateful that someone at the government level in Thailand is taking it seriously.

 

In my case, in Washington, I had a helluva time getting instructors and administrators to give me the time of day. Fortunately, though, word spread and I eventually became in demand.

 

It's tough, though, getting people to believe that something we normally take for granted......... can kill you.......... if it happens at the wrong time, and in the wrong way. Kill you, and others! 

 

One last little tidbit.......... 

 

Research shows........ (from Australia, if I recall correctly)......... that being awake for 20 hours straight......... (only 4 more than our "normal" waking hours)......... your reactions, reflexes, and decision-making ability will be virtually the same as a person who is legally drunk. (U.S. = .08 alcohol) 

 

Sleep matters! Avoiding micro-sleeps matters particularly! 

 

Cheers! 

 

(Now back to your regularly scheduled programming!) 

[Excel]

1 minute ago, KanchanaburiGuy said:

The micro-sleep issue is real. So are the accidents, injuries, property damage, and deaths they cause. 

 

20 years ago, I was fairly well known in Washington State as a sleep awareness activist. I was invited to many High Schools around the state to give one hour presentations on sleep and its importance to safe driving. The audience was kids who were just beginning their adventures in driving: Drivers' Education Classes. 

 

Micro-sleeps---awareness of them, how to avoid them, what to do about them--were perhaps the single most important part of those classes. 

 

"60 miles per hour. You nod off for just one second. ONE SECOND! That means your car will travel 88 feet with no one driving the car! 

 

"88 feet is enough to drive across 4 lanes of traffic, or smack head-on---at full speed---into someone going the opposite way!" 

 

If I remember correctly, something like 90% of long-haul truck drivers admitted to having at least one "head drop" while they were driving, in the preceding year. 

 

The thing about a "head drop" is........... 

 

It doesn't mean you are falling asleep. It means you ARE asleep! 

 

A 40-50,000 pound truck barreling down the highway............ with no one driving! 

 

Micro-sleeps are a big deal. 

 

Personally, I am incredibly grateful that someone at the government level in Thailand is taking it seriously.

 

In my case, in Washington, I had a helluva time getting instructors and administrators to give me the time of day. Fortunately, though, word spread and I eventually became in demand.

 

It's tough, though, getting people to believe that something we normally take for granted......... can kill you.......... if it happens at the wrong time, and in the wrong way. Kill you, and others! 

 

One last little tidbit.......... 

 

Research shows........ (from Australia, if I recall correctly)......... that being awake for 20 hours straight......... (only 4 more than our "normal" waking hours)......... your reactions, reflexes, and decision-making ability will be virtually the same as a person who is legally drunk. (U.S. = .08 alcohol) 

 

Sleep matters! Avoiding micro-sleeps matters particularly! 

 

Cheers! 

 

(Now back to your regularly scheduled programming!) 

Well thanks for that but reading thro' it all just made me yaaaaaaaaaawn

[richard_smith237]

So easily done... 

 

Everyone thinks they can ‘handle it’...   they are a better driver, can maintain concentration etc...

 

I remember it happening to me about 10 years ago.

....   3 hours into a drive.... BAM... !!... Did just fall asleep ????.... Holy SHHHH....  scared the cr@p out of myself...    (nothing happened, very lucky, I didn’t even drift off the driving line... but I know I’d dropped off, for a split second, for 1 second, for 4 seconds, I don’t know). 

 

 

It's never happened again - If I think I’m tried, I’ll switch driving with my Wife... (usually if we are going away somewhere and I’ve had a late night with the boys the night before). 

 

 

there is facebook page (bad driving Thailand - I think its called) there are a load of videos of lorry drivers who just drift off and crash. 

 

One of things I like about Thailand...  ‘most’ of the interprovincial highways are separate lanes in each direction. 

[KanchanaburiGuy]

30 minutes ago, Pedrogaz said:

What data does he have to suggest that the 'true' incidence is higher than the reported incidence?????

"Reported" incidents usually mean the driver survived. When the driver gets killed, there's often no one to tell them what happened. So, OF COURSE, "true" incident totals will wind up being higher than "reported" incidents. 

 

(With fatal accidents, the determination must often be made from the details of the accident: No braking, for example, or no course correction. And they  frequently are single-vehicle accidents, with no obvious outside factors. [Later, autopsies may also reveal no underlying health cause, like a sudden heart attack or stroke.]) 

 

Sure, there's some estimating going on. But they are not uneducated estimates. There are some pretty solid clues from which conclusions can be drawn. 

 

Cheers! 

 

[KanchanaburiGuy]

14 minutes ago, Excel said:

Well thanks for that but reading thro' it all just made me yaaaaaaaaaawn

Well, actually, no! 

 

Boring reading can't make you sleepy. It can only reveal  the sleepiness your body is carrying already! 

 

So, while you might have found my post boring............ that's NOT why you yawned! 

 

????????????

 

Cheers! 

[Excel]

Just now, KanchanaburiGuy said:

Well, actually, no! 

 

Boring reading can't make you sleepy. It can only reveal  the sleepiness your body is carrying already! 

 

So, while you might have found my post boring............ that's NOT why you yawned! 

 

????????????

 

Cheers! 

Bet your a bundle of laughs in the pub ????

[paulikens]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

He said that most people need 8 hours sleep

I think that should be revised for Thais.  its about 10-12 hours 

[mushroomdave]

I still say the "micro-sleep" is their excuse most of the time as it saves a "bit" of face, other than saying they were "paying more attention to their phone instead of the traffic / their surroundings when it all went down!!"...idiots!!

[Daimler]

4 hours ago, DezLez said:

I nearly dozed off reading it!

This must be true as my wife can sleep any where and any time

 

[CLW]

4 hours ago, law ling said:

1. Falling asleep is also, seemingly, an accepted excuse to explain an accident - whatever may have been the cause.

 

2. For night-driving, I find many roads here have neither street lights nor reflectors (marking the lanes and shoulders) - leaving you to drive often in a near-black-void (other than what your headlights, or other traffic, may show up) ... giving your mind too little to concentrate and focus on.

Reflective road markings would be a good start