Moonlight, Temperatures May Have Played Role in Dickinson Accident

On Tuesday afternoon, three college softball players from Dickinson State University were found after they apparently drove their SUV straight into a pond on a Dickinson, N.D.,

By Carly PorterAccuWeather.com

The moon Sunday night was 99 percent full and had risen late in the afternoon.

At the time of the accident, the moon would have been high in the sky.

Scattered clouds were reported at the Dickinson Regional Airport, south of Dickinson. Given the position of the moon, the scattered nature of the clouds and the rural location, the area where the accident occurred would have been well lit, not pitch black.

Another weather factor that night was the temperature. The temperature fell rapidly that evening from 48 degrees just prior to sunset to near 26 degrees at the time of the accident, again, according to the official observations at the airport. There was a little rain Saturday, but probably not enough to cause any standing water on rural roadways. Ice on roads was unlikely. However, frost could have started to form on grassy areas which would lead to a slippery condition.

The temperature of the pond was likely in the 40s, said AccuWeather.com Expert Senior Meteorologist Henry Margusity. The pond temperature could have influenced hypothermia symptoms.

Hypothermia, when the body loses heat faster than it can produce it, sets in when a person is exposed to cold weather or is immersed in cold water for even a quick period of time. When body temperature drops, many organs begin to fail, and if left untreated, the heart can become completely unresponsive.

According to the Mayo Clinic, water temperatures as high as 65 degrees can lead to hypothermia.

Mythbusters, the popular Discovery Channel television show, reports that it is almost impossible for a man to open the doors of a vehicle becoming submerged due to the pressure differential between outside and inside the car.

After the interior of the vehicle is completely flooded, the pressure is equalized and the doors can be opened if the person does not panic and is able to get enough air prior to being submerged. Read the Next Story