How do brushes grab ... and even kill?!!

[JJJakubowski]

In 2007 a young man attending a GooGoo exterior express in Michigan was killed when he was entangled in a whirling brush. And very recently, a young female attendant at a Golden Nozzle EE in Massachusetts was pulled into and almost strangled when her scarf was caught up in a brush.

Pardon my ignorance/confusion, but I just do not understand the mechanics or physics in play in these situations. I can see, of course, how the fingers of a brush/cloth could wrap around and snag antenna or side mirror. But how does an human body get pulled INTO a brush ... and killed?!! Intuitively, one would expect the centrifugal force to push a person (or whatever) AWAY . And we've all seen all sorts of TV commercials and jackass stunts on YouTube where people blithely waltz thru a gauntlet of spinning brushes --- no harm ... just good, clean, healthy fun.

Some news reports about the female attendant in MA said she was entangled in a "spinner". I guess I could understand that ... if she had been on her knees next to a wheel cleaner. But it happened when she was just walking across the conveyor.

Obviously these incidents are flukes. But could someone explain how a spinning brush (on extraordinarily rare occasions) can grab, pull and even kill? Thanks.

JJJ/SSCWN

 

[DavidM]

I believe what happens is not the body itself being pulled in but rather a hose or a scarf. My understanding is that the GooGoo incident happened when the hose being used to wash down the tunnel was grabbed by the spinning brush. The hose wraps around the brush along with the person.

Spinning brushes will grab up a hose in the blink of an eye. We have a strict policy regarding wash down procedure for this reason.

David

 

[jfmoran]

As David said it is not the individual that gets grabbed but an item of clothing (like in this lucky young ladies case, a scarf) or a hose as is the case with the deceased young man. I have personally witnessed the aftermath of a wrap grabbing a pressure hose and gun and beating the side of a vehicle. It happens in a blink of an eye. Proper training and procedures will eliminate most if not all of these occurrences.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

It really is in the training and the implementation of the procedures when working around that type of equipment. Carelessness can cause a lot of harm, as evidenced here.

 

[Ben's Car Wash]

and the girl in Ocala who lost her leg when a hose got caught in the wraps and pulled her in. I too had a pressure washer pulled in when an employee was spraying down the tunnel and into the side of a car..... employees are not very smart and car washes can be a dangerous place.

 

[Axxlrod]

This is one of the reasons I do not have my wraps interlocked to my conveyor. They turn on and off for each vehicle.

 

[MEP001]

I was told a story about a top brush of an auto that grabbed a rope, and the 30-lb tank of propane to which it was tied, out of the bed of an El Camino and did a tiny bit of damage across the roof, windshield and hood.

 

[JJJakubowski]

Now that I think about it, that reminds me of a story I was told by a operator who got into self serve after having tunnel operations. After too many labor hassles, he was nudged outta tunnels after a cloth/brush "grabbed" a heavy duty concrete tamper from the back of a pickup and proceeded to totally demolish the next vehicle on the conveyor!

I imagine the new more slippery foam "brushes" make such grabbing entanglements considerably less likely ... right? Also --- don't they tend to break before they grab and yank?

JJJ/SSCWN
---------------------------------
The Poster Formerly Known

 

[Earl Weiss]

This is one of the reasons I do not have my wraps interlocked to my conveyor. They turn on and off for each vehicle.

Not sure what you mean? Mine are programmed for the vehicle at 3 of 4 places and interlocked to the conveyor. This means everything stops when the conveyor stops. even if a car is positioned in the wrap. One place has one set of each. The ones that are always on with the conveyor / interlocked is because they are close to the entrance and the customers do little or no damage to a spinning wrap and their vehicle when they drive in to it.

Many newer setups
have the wraps out to the sides until a car reaches them so a car in gear will possibly miss them

 

[Earl Weiss]

Now that I think about it, that reminds me of a story I was told by a operator who got into self serve after having tunnel operations. After too many labor hassles, he was nudged outta tunnels after a cloth/brush "grabbed" a heavy duty concrete tamper from the back of a pickup and proceeded to totally demolish the next vehicle on the conveyor!

I imagine the new more slippery foam "brushes" make such grabbing entanglements considerably less likely ... right? Also --- don't they tend to break before they grab and yank?

JJJ/SSCWN
---------------------------------
The Poster Formerly Known

Don't know about demolish but had thousands in Damage to 3 cars when the wraps grabbed a length of metal from the bed of a pickup.

 

[Earl Weiss]

JJ sounds like you may be pushing for the SS being the "Safest" wash around

Of course the ninnys will figure out ways to mess that up to like hooking a hose on a mirror.

 

[carwashken]

bublegum machine

I remember back in the 80's after we added a cloth top brush to the Hanna, we washed a sherrif's car when we heard the siren go off. we hit the e stop and found the light bar on his hood and the roof pealed like a tin can. His Sargent was on the radio chewin his *#& out. it was hillarious.

 

[Waxman]

Seems like conveyorized operations would have proper staffing to inspect truck beds prior to entry, as well as spot things that would likely be caught in the brushes; light bars on cop cars, etc.

Tunnel operators love to hype their washes as the best quality wash out there, but I personally think damaging the heck out of 3 or 4 cars when it was avoidable negates the 'best wash' claims of tunnels.

 

[RykoPro]

The hydraulics are the problem. The bypass regulators need to be set so this cannot happen. Ryko uses electric motors with hysteresis overloads to shut off the brush if it becomes entangeled. Hydraulic driven motors with the bypass set too high can rip a body apart.