the transformers bumble bee camaro was totaled

[junkman1153]

while filming the new transformers movie the bumble bee camaro was totaled in a collision with a police car

[Jordan White]

Any pics or a link to an article?

[junkman1153]

Any pics or a link to an article?

just saw the video on the local news a police bomb squad chevy suburban responding to a call basically cleaned out the right front end of the camaro. they said somebody was injured not serious

[TurboKitty]

Jalopnik.com article:

"Several streets around downtown D.C. were closed off for filming; why the D.C. police SUV with sirens blaring decided to use the closed street isn't clear. The video from local TV station Fox5 shows crew members covering Bumblebee up after the accident.

Another spectator near the scene showed how the filming began, with the Optimus Prime semi leading a number of vehicles down the street at high speed before Bumblebee was set to join them.

It's not clear who is at fault, but it's yet another example of an accident on one of Michael Bay's action-charged sets."

Here is the Fox5 TV Station video:

http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/entertainment/dc-police-suv-hits-bumblebee-at-transformer-3-filming-in-dc-101110?ref=nf

and here is the private video from youtube showing the accident from a distance. Note that the ambulance is not part of the movie:

**********************************************************

You'd think that a the Police Officer, a 25 year veteran senior explosive ordinance technician, would know that the street was closed down legally, and that there would be stuff going on for the movie that includes cars driving around and stunts being shot. It takes legal permits to shut down roads for filming. Kind of ironic lol. At least nobody was seriously hurt, and they usually have more than one car built for movies in case of an accident. They will more than likely rebuild the Camaro as another backup car while one of the backup cars takes over.

Edited October 12, 2010 by MB_ChargerChick

[junkman1153]

http://jalopnik.com/5661321/bumblebee-smashes-cop-car-in-yet-another-transformers-3-accident

has vid & more info...

they sure hustled to put a tarp over the wrecked camaro

Edited October 12, 2010 by junkman1153

[Railfreak78]

What a shame. I feel bad for the cop the most though. I know he was trying to do his job and I noticed that it's a K9 unit so I hope the dog was ok too. I like the Transformers series but it's not like multi million doller movie companies can't buy another Camaro and re-make the car. I will note that the worse part of all of this is that it happened on a re-take. If that silver car did not spin out then none of this would have happened. Strange with the timing.

[Eric Stone]

You'd think that a the Police Officer, a 25 year veteran senior explosive ordinance technician, would know that the street was closed down legally, and that there would be stuff going on for the movie that includes cars driving around and stunts being shot. It takes legal permits to shut down roads for filming.

From the Fox 5 article: "Law enforcement sources tell FOX 5 that he was driving to a call for a suspicious package incident nearby and was using a different radio channel than the police officers who were securing the perimeter for the movie."

If that silver car did not spin out then none of this would have happened. Strange with the timing.

I heard on-lookers on one of the YouTube videos talking like the silver car was supposed to spin out, as a scripted part of the movie.

[Agent G]

Jalopnik.com article:

**********************************************************

You'd think that a the Police Officer, a 25 year veteran senior explosive ordinance technician, would know that the street was closed down legally, and that there would be stuff going on for the movie that includes cars driving around and stunts being shot. It takes legal permits to shut down roads for filming. Kind of ironic lol. At least nobody was seriously hurt, and they usually have more than one car built for movies in case of an accident. They will more than likely rebuild the Camaro as another backup car while one of the backup cars takes over.

Not Necessarily.

Closing streets is a Traffic Division and District job. Bomb and Arson would be well out of that loop, unless they closed the street.

Been there, done that,

G

[davyou5]

they sure hustled to put a tarp over the wrecked camaro

I don't know who the Driver was, but to me if that was a professional stunt drvier behind the wheel, they need to get back on the track and learn to maneuver a vehicle, and some may argue this point, but I think the accident could have been avoided even with the speed the driver was going. Cause it seems to me that the police SUV was visible enough to make the correct deterimination that something with the scene was amiss, especially if the scene called for a clear roads.

And yes they sure were quick to cover up that car after the wreck. Lots of people standing around and they think they can cover up the accident in hurry .

I was also reading another movie scene accident with the new Green Hornet movie, when the Black beauty smashed into a wall. Speculation on that is that it was deliberate.

[Railfreak78]

I heard on-lookers on one of the YouTube videos talking like the silver car was supposed to spin out, as a scripted part of the movie.

[highway]

the big black truck ( can't think of the name)

I think that's Ironhide.

[TurboKitty]

if you watch the Fox5 video, the police officer drove right through the closed off area (where other police cars and officers were present to make sure spectators & other people were kept out). He almost got hit by the Optimus Prime big rig, driving right in front of it. What if he had been hit by that instead of the Camaro? Police officers are trained to drive smart, but that was a dumb move. Bomb squad or not, that particular road was closed off legally. It doesn't matter that he was on a different channel than the police officers on the scene, the entire department should have known that those streets were to be closed for filming. If anything, why didn't the officers who were keeping the perimeter clear know that a bomb squad unit was heading that way? Communication is key. The stunt man driving the Camaro did not expect a Police SUV to pop up in front of him, he was not at fault. The lack of communication by the local PD is what was at fault if you really think about it. He used a road that he shouldn't have used, potentially putting innocent people at risk by speeding down the road (and almost getting t-boned by a big rig in the process before cutting off the Camaro).

To go a little off topic here, Michael Bay's safety when it comes to this movie is pretty crappy, to say the least. Not too long ago during another stunt, a young woman had a cable tear her car in half with her in it, flipping the car end over end, and slicing open her skull. She was an extra that was paid $25 to use her own car in a scene that was being filmed driving down a highway. Before that happened, the same rigging that was used in that stunt had been tested prior to filming, and it failed then too. WHY does this idiot allow failed equipment to be used? The girl had her friggin' head sliced wide open. Here is the video of that, she was driving the 2nd car that was flipping around:

http://jalopnik.com/5631977/video-shows-transformers-3-skull+slicing-accident

There have been other accidents during the movie shoot too, but anyway, this one is clearly the fault of the Police SUV, bomb or no bomb, he should not have been on a road that was closed down without other police knowing about it so that the filming could be stopped for that moment. *Lack of communication*.

[Nick Notarangelo]

heres the website I deal with

http://transformerslive.blogspot.com/

[MoparWoman Jamie]

I know my friend Mark is going to be shock when I tell him about this as he's a fan of the cartoon movie and also a fan of the transformer films as well.

[Danno]

if you watch the Fox5 video, the police officer drove right through the closed off area (where other police cars and officers were present to make sure spectators & other people were kept out). He almost got hit by the Optimus Prime big rig, driving right in front of it. What if he had been hit by that instead of the Camaro? Police officers are trained to drive smart, but that was a dumb move. Bomb squad or not, that particular road was closed off legally. It doesn't matter that he was on a different channel than the police officers on the scene, the entire department should have known that those streets were to be closed for filming. If anything, why didn't the officers who were keeping the perimeter clear know that a bomb squad unit was heading that way? Communication is key. The stunt man driving the Camaro did not expect a Police SUV to pop up in front of him, he was not at fault. The lack of communication by the local PD is what was at fault if you really think about it. He used a road that he shouldn't have used, potentially putting innocent people at risk by speeding down the road (and almost getting t-boned by a big rig in the process before cutting off the Camaro).

There have been other accidents during the movie shoot too, but anyway, this one is clearly the fault of the Police SUV, bomb or no bomb, he should not have been on a road that was closed down without other police knowing about it so that the filming could be stopped for that moment. *Lack of communication*.

Thank you for your expert analysis. Actually, one thing you may have gotten right is that the accident likely occurred as a result of a communications failure. Not a 'lack of communication' but a breakdown in the communication process.

What you may not realize is that when a road is closed to traffic by issuance of a permit for a special purpose, the road is not closed to police or closed for emergency vehicle use in emergency situations. The fact that the road was cleared of normal traffic would actually make it a better shortcut than "open" traffic-filled streets, so long as the closure was not for the purpose of a street fair or other gathering of pedestrians (as an example). The only other type of 'closure' that would render the route unavailable to an emergency response would be situations where the route was obstructed by construction (ditched, excavated, pavement removed, etc.) or bridge failure or removal, etc., or by collapse of buildings or surrounding terrain, or the types of situations that would render the route unpassable.

The available information indicates (1) the bomb squad officer was responding to a possible bomb ~~ in our nation's capitol ~~ which is a situation that actually places "innocent people" at real risk, (2) the bomb squad officer notified the traffic and special duty officers that he was responding through the closed area, (3) and apparently the movie crew 'rolled the action' anyway. Keep in mind the videos have audio tracks in which the bomb squad officer's siren can clearly be heard approaching even before 'Optimus' and the other actor/vehicles get the signal to begin rolling.

What has not yet been released (if it has yet been determined at this point) is what happened to the information that the bomb squad officer's emergency response route was bringing him through the cordoned area being used as the movie set. It is known that he notified the officers working the movie set (perhaps relayed by police dispatchers). Obviously he drove through the closure barricades at the far end of the cordoned area where those officers were stationed. Questions remaining unanswered publicly are (1) did the special duty officers notify the film crew/director and (2) what did the film crew/director do to hold the "action" for a couple of minutes until the bomb squad officer cleared the cordoned area or (3) did someone disregard the warning and proceed to "roll" anyway?

No doubt, further professional investigation by true experts will determine the facts. Then, we'll all know for certain rather than guessing.

Accidents involving emergency vehicles responding to emergencies occur all too often ... maybe not every day, but quite often. The drivers of emergency vehicles are usually quite well trained in handling such situations. The vast majority of emergency vehicle accidents are not the EV driver's fault.

While it is possible the bomb squad officer erred, it is too early to jump to uninformed conclusions as to guilt.

[TurboKitty]

Thank you for your expert analysis. Actually, one thing you may have gotten right is that the accident likely occurred as a result of a communications failure. Not a 'lack of communication' but a breakdown in the communication process.

What you may not realize is that when a road is closed to traffic by issuance of a permit for a special purpose, the road is not closed to police or closed for emergency vehicle use in emergency situations. The fact that the road was cleared of normal traffic would actually make it a better shortcut than "open" traffic-filled streets, so long as the closure was not for the purpose of a street fair or other gathering of pedestrians (as an example). The only other type of 'closure' that would render the route unavailable to an emergency response would be situations where the route was obstructed by construction (ditched, excavated, pavement removed, etc.) or bridge failure or removal, etc., or by collapse of buildings or surrounding terrain, or the types of situations that would render the route unpassable.

The available information indicates (1) the bomb squad officer was responding to a possible bomb ~~ in our nation's capitol ~~ which is a situation that actually places "innocent people" at real risk, (2) the bomb squad officer notified the traffic and special duty officers that he was responding through the closed area, (3) and apparently the movie crew 'rolled the action' anyway. Keep in mind the videos have audio tracks in which the bomb squad officer's siren can clearly be heard approaching even before 'Optimus' and the other actor/vehicles get the signal to begin rolling.

What has not yet been released (if it has yet been determined at this point) is what happened to the information that the bomb squad officer's emergency response route was bringing him through the cordoned area being used as the movie set. It is known that he notified the officers working the movie set (perhaps relayed by police dispatchers). Obviously he drove through the closure barricades at the far end of the cordoned area where those officers were stationed. Questions remaining unanswered publicly are (1) did the special duty officers notify the film crew/director and (2) what did the film crew/director do to hold the "action" for a couple of minutes until the bomb squad officer cleared the cordoned area or (3) did someone disregard the warning and proceed to "roll" anyway?

No doubt, further professional investigation by true experts will determine the facts. Then, we'll all know for certain rather than guessing.

Accidents involving emergency vehicles responding to emergencies occur all too often ... maybe not every day, but quite often. The drivers of emergency vehicles are usually quite well trained in handling such situations. The vast majority of emergency vehicle accidents are not the EV driver's fault.

While it is possible the bomb squad officer erred, it is too early to jump to uninformed conclusions as to guilt.

For one, I never stated that I am an expert, but thank you for your assumption . Second, I simply stated what anyone can see in the video and read what the articles stated. The officer barreled right through the closed off area right in front of the "Optimus Prime" Semi (what if he had done that a second later and gotten plowed by the semi, and gotten killed? Who would be at fault then? Probably not the semi driver). Who yet knows if the directors of the movie, or whoever calls the shots, disregarded the notification that emergency vehicles were coming through (if there was one, that is). Either way if you watch the video, it is not the "Bumblebee" driver's fault. IF there is an issue where the crew was told to film the scene anyway, then it's on that person since it is obviously blatant disregard to important information. At the same time, supposedly the Police SUV was on a different radio channel than the police officers that were on set. Wouldn't those officers, who seemed to be closer to the "bomb scene", have to respond to the call too? Anything that places innocent people's lives in danger would be more important than a movie, no? Also, the way the officer (in the SUV) was driving, he could have put innocent spectators at risk as well. There's more than one way to get to the Capitol, he didn't necessarily *have* to go down that road. But that is just my opinion, you don't have to agree . Anyway the movie will get (or already has) another Camaro to replace the wrecked one.

[Danno]

For one, I never stated that I am an expert ...

No, but you very matter-of-factly passed judgment on something you know nothing about and made conclusions based on no particular expertise other than being a TV-watcher.

Second, I simply stated what anyone can see in the video and read what the articles stated. The officer barreled right through the closed off area right in front of the "Optimus Prime" Semi (what if he had done that a second later and gotten plowed by the semi, and gotten killed? Who would be at fault then? Probably not the semi driver).

You didn't just 'simply state,' you injected judgmental opinion and asserted it as fact. I'm only pointing out that you may be wrong in your assumptions. "Barreled" is a judgmental term implying something other than the actual fact that the officer was in emergency response mode while en route to a dispatched emergency.

Who yet knows if the directors of the movie, or whoever calls the shots, disregarded the notification that emergency vehicles were coming through ...

Exactly one of my points. We do not yet know all of the facts. It is premature to assign guilt or responsibility.

Either way if you watch the video, it is not the "Bumblebee" driver's fault ...

No one said it was. But again this is another conclusion you are drawing without knowing the facts. It could turn out that the driver was instructed not to proceed but disregarded the instruction because he saw 'Optimus Prime' proceeding; it could turn out that he didn't understand the cancellation of the 'action;' my point is that there are a number of possibilities and things are not always what they seem. Best to wait for facts rather than casting aspersions around.

And, accidents are accidents and sometimes no one is "at fault."

IF there is an issue where the crew was told to film the scene anyway, then it's on that person since it is obviously blatant disregard to important information ...

Precisely. Another one of my points.

At the same time, supposedly the Police SUV was on a different radio channel than the police officers that were on set. Wouldn't those officers, who seemed to be closer to the "bomb scene", have to respond to the call too?

No. The officers on the set were off-duty and working "special duty" jobs. As such, they are not available for or utilized for "on-duty" calls. There was a full contingent of on-duty officers to handle all business.

And, by the way, any large city, metropolitan area, or county utilizes many frequencies or 'radio channels' for their communications systems because there simply isn't enough capacity on just one 'channel' for all their officers and all the radio traffic that needs to take place. As such, it is quite commonplace for multiple different frequencies or 'radio channels' to be in use at one time ~~~ nothing sinister there.

Anything that places innocent people's lives in danger would be more important than a movie, no?

Certainly. Duh. But there are officers assigned to duty and there are officers who are "off" duty. The movie set can only employ "off duty" officers who are not subject to routine daily business. See above.

Also, the way the officer (in the SUV) was driving, he could have put innocent spectators at risk as well.

That's the whole point of a street being closed for movie-making; there are no "innocent spectators" on the street. And, remember the term "trained professional." It applies to the officer's emergency vehicle operation (driving).

There's more than one way to get to the Capitol, he didn't necessarily *have* to go down that road.

True. But there was no reason he could not, either. If he elected to take the most direct, quickest, and least obstructed route in order to minimize jeopardy to innocent people (remember the bomb call) and it happened to be through an area closed to the public and controlled by other officers, that was within his discretion ~~ unless Washington DC has an ordinance prohibiting same or unless WDCPD has an internal rule prohiting same. Regardless, it matters not what a Michigan Chick or an Arizona Dude think; the law controls and we will eventually hear the outcome of the investigation.

But that is just my opinion ...

Correct. And, again ~~ not fact, just an opinion. Once again, precisely my point.

And I simply offered an opinion in balance, based on education, training, knowledge, and experience, in an effort to dispel some misconceptions and temper some emotional reactions with reason.

Beyond that, we can purely agree to disagree if you choose to ignore anything I presented here.

And you are correct: the movie will go on because there's always another Bumblebee!

[Greg Cullinan]

I feel that even if it was the Pope,Nelson Mandela,Obama,and the Dali Lama on the closed off streets, that the police have the right a way and if you here sirens,MOVE. Sometimes seconds and minutes are precious in a emergency situation

[jbwelda]

well i would have to say it improved the lines of the camaro significantly.

i saw a flourescent green "new" camaro the other day and was amazed that someone would actually buy one of those. what an ugly pile of you know what. i have a hard time believing thats the best american car designers can do. it looks big boxy and ugly and needs a sectioning job something terrible. or a crumpled front end to take away that gawd awful smirk.

[Jon Cole]

I am sure they have one, no, several other "Bumblebee" cars. In most TV and movie productions, there are always backup vehicles if such vehicle is a main player to the story. Only question is, where? On the D.C. set, or out in L.A?

[Darin Bastedo]

I think the reason for the tarp is that if you look closely you can see clues that this camaro is the new Z28 model that hasn't debuted yet.

Edited October 12, 2010 by Darin Bastedo

[Joe Handley]

I am sure they have one, no, several other "Bumblebee" cars. In most TV and movie productions, there are always backup vehicles if such vehicle is a main player to the story. Only question is, where? On the D.C. set, or out in L.A?

I'd be surprised if they didn't have a few of all the main vehicles laying around where ever the shoot is taking place in any car intensive production, I've read that was the case even with shows like 90210's EV1 and '58 Vette

I do think it will be interesting to see what happens with this investigation and if;

a. There was some miss communication between all involved parties.

b. They knew that officer was coming and decided to shoot the scene anyway while using him flying through to their advantage, which obviously came back to bite them hard!.

c. That particular officer has the attitude of "I've got a badge and I'll go where ever I feel like!" and that came back to bite him hard!

d. All of what's found in the investigation is never released.

e. The truly guilty party (on which ever side) get's a well hidden slap on the wrist while the more innocent party gets thrown under the media circus bus as the villain of the incident

Edited October 12, 2010 by Joe Handley

[whale392]

And thank YOU for your EXPERT opinion there DANNO. Just because you wear a badge does NOT quailify you to make arrogant statements without knowing ALL of the facts either. Does me being a professional and LICENCED (by our federal government no less) aircraft mechanic (with quite a few years experience in many forms of aviation) make me a qualified expert to judge what happened in a plane crash? NO. Just like you, until I know all the facts, my answers would be best guesses based on working knowledge. Now step back, collect yourself, and think about what you say/type before you do. While you may not have meant to come off as a pr1ck, YOUR matter-of-factness did indeed accomplish just that. No harm-no foul though, but I do think that Michelle has some right to her own speculations just the same as you do......does she not? Or has that been taken away too, just like many of the other freedoms me and my brothers/sister fought/fight to protect?

[Danno]

And thank YOU for your EXPERT opinion there DANNO. Just because you wear a badge does NOT quailify you to make arrogant statements without knowing ALL of the facts either. Does me being a professional and LICENCED (by our federal government no less) aircraft mechanic (with quite a few years experience in many forms of aviation) make me a qualified expert to judge what happened in a plane crash? NO. Just like you, until I know all the facts, my answers would be best guesses based on working knowledge. Now step back, collect yourself, and think about what you say/type before you do. While you may not have meant to come off as a pr1ck, YOUR matter-of-factness did indeed accomplish just that. No harm-no foul though, but I do think that Michelle has some right to her own speculations just the same as you do......does she not? Or has that been taken away too, just like many of the other freedoms me and my brothers/sister fought/fight to protect?

Re-read what I wrote. That's exactly what I said: Until all the facts are known, none of us, professional or guesser alike, is in a position to pass judgment on what happened. That was my point. I did not make any arrogant statements; I pointed out things that were apparently outside her sphere of knowledge and recommended she not draw half-baked conclusions until the facts are known.

I certainly did not intend to come off as ... well, I won't use your language ... or arrogant. That is apparently your opinion. But regardless, you are welcome; glad to share my expert opinion with you. And you can rest assured, I wouldn't try to tell you how to service an airframe or scold you for knowing what you're talking about in your field of expertise. A man has to know his limitations and I keep to my fields of expertise or experience.

I certainly agree that Ms. Blanchard has every right to an opinion ~~~ as we all do; you and myself included ~~~ so long as it is clearly aired as an opinion and not as established fact. The important thing to remember about the right to air opinions is that it ends when someone else suffers from it. While the officer in DC may not be directly adversely effected by Ms. Blanchard's posting, it just isn't right to allow unsubstantiated speculation to go unchallenged without presenting balance.

To my knowledge, her rights have not been taken away. She just ran headlong into 'the other side of the story.'

And, you and your brothers/sisters do not have a corner on the market for fighting to protect freedoms; many of us have done so. I will confess: I am perplexed by where that comment came from or what you meant by it.

Relax.

[Chuck Most]

I'm just shocked a real car was used in a Michael Bay movie,much less destroyed- that hack doesn't know how to make a movie without that 21st century filmmaking crutch, CGI. Strangely, considering all that's happened, I'm not even happy a Camaro was destroyed, something which usually makes me all giddy.