Popular wisdom would have you believe that accidents just "happen" . They don't. All knowledgeable safety practitioners know that for accidents to occur, a specific chain of events in a specific space and time need to take place otherwise the accident will not occur.
Accident theory suggests that accidents involving people are complex and require a cumulative set of circumstances be met for them to occur. So what does this have to do with you and being prepared.
Simply that if you better understand how these events take place and why, you are more effectively able to assess and prepare by eliminating the circumstances necessary for them to occur.
Was your vehicle well maintained? Were the tires inflated properly? Mirror functioning? Seat belt worn as per company policy/state law? Were you late and speeding? Were you not driving defensively or distracted using a cell phone? The list can go on....you get the point.
Being clueless and not anticipating that something can go seriously wrong due to a variety of factors that have been in play for some time can cause you become complacent.
On the flip side we don't want people to go around yelling the sky is falling either...(there are plenty of nuts doing just that). Be cognizant of your risky behaviors that can contribute to accidents - modify them and be prepared for what you might reasonably need to do if an event were to occur.
Visit http://www.ice4safety.com/posters.html and download a new ICE Preparedness Poster using this picture.
