A Near Miss on My Neighborhood Street: Why That Loose Hubcap Could Have Been Fatal

I was walking a block away from my house, minding my own business. I reached the corner, looked both ways, and safely crossed the street.

I had only taken a few steps on the opposite sidewalk when I heard it: a sudden, explosive metallic crash.

Instinct, unfiltered survival instinct—kicked in. Before my conscious brain could even process what was happening, I dropped and ducked low to the pavement.

Good thing I did.

The very microsecond I ducked, a projectile whizzed right through the space my head had occupied a split second before. It was a cheap, plastic hubcap, spinning like a deadly Frisbee. It had flown off an older, beat-up sedan that was speeding down the road and violently slammed into a massive, neglected pothole.

As I crouched there on the sidewalk, heart pounding against my ribs, the reality of the situation washed over me.

I could have been decapitated!

It sounds like a scene straight out of a Final Destination movie, but the danger of flying vehicle debris is terrifyingly real. When cars hit road hazards like deep potholes at high speeds, loose components—especially poorly secured hubcaps, rusted-out exhaust pipes, and loose trim—can become lethal projectiles.

I still don't know why I ducked so fast before even looking, but I'm eternally grateful that my reflexes were faster than that flying piece of metal.