Frozen Squirrel Breaks Windshield

Status: Undetermined
Norwich Union, a UK car insurance company, has published a list of the ten weirdest claims it received in 2005. Topping the list is this:

"A frozen squirrel fell out of a tree and crashed through the windscreen on to the passenger seat."

Unfortunately Norwich Union doesn't say if it found the claims to be legitimate. It only says that it received them. In the case of the frozen squirrel, you really have to wonder if it could be true. I suppose a squirrel could freeze to death up in a tree, and it could then fall onto a car parked below. But it would have to fall pretty far to pick up enough momentum to crash through the windshield. Though maybe the car wasn't parked. Maybe it was moving. This is clearly a case where more details are needed. (via The Guardian)

Animals

Posted on Mon Feb 06, 2006


Comments

Isn't there something similiar to this about Russians testing a jet's wind shield and accidently using a frozen turkey to test the strength of the wind shiled vs. a bird flying into it?
Posted by Lonewatchman  on  Tue Feb 07, 2006  at  05:33 AM
A similar legend: http://www.snopes.com/science/cannon.htm
Posted by Boo  on  Tue Feb 07, 2006  at  06:45 AM
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060206/od_nm/claims_dc

"All the cited claims were legitimate and had been paid out, the spokeswoman said."
Posted by Tru  on  Tue Feb 07, 2006  at  08:27 AM
The Mythbusters on the Discovery Channel also tested the theory between frozen and thawed chickens striking an airplane windshield on Episode 9.
Posted by dae dae  on  Tue Feb 07, 2006  at  10:27 AM
We had that burning mouse in the house story a couple weeks ago that was assumed true by many media outlets. I'm sure there are a lot of bizarre stories out there but I cannot accept a frozen squirrel going through a windshield. Think about all the things that smash into windshields and don't break through the glass even with both the car and object moving at high speeds. I think a frozen squirrel might crack a windshield from a fall but not break through.
Posted by Lonewatchman  on  Tue Feb 07, 2006  at  10:33 AM
...If anything, it's not necessarily a big deal *what* caused dmg...just as long as it wasn't intentional.

You could tell me that your dog chewed through your sunroof - and I wouldn't care, as long as after it was investigated it obviously wasn't intentional.
Posted by Maegan  on  Wed Feb 08, 2006  at  06:24 PM
Have you ever seen someone try to smash a windshield? It's not easy. It's one giant pane of safety glass, which means you not only have to break the glass, you have to tear through some very tough plastic.

Most of the time when people try to break a windshield with a sledgehammer or a baseball bat, they just put a big crumbly dent in it.

So I find it extremely hard to believe that a frozen squirrel could make it all the way through to the passenger seat.
Posted by ben syverson  on  Sun Feb 12, 2006  at  08:32 AM
It is real. Otherwise they wouldnt have released that. the others are:10 cow shattered windscreen withitsrear end,9 cow jumped on quad bike,8 carcharged by bull,7 potato lodged behind brake caused crash,6 wasp down trouser caused crash,5 zebra collided with car at safari park,4 cowslicked paint off car,3 flying kebab damaged car,2 reindeer fell onto bonnet.
Posted by J  on  Mon Oct 02, 2006  at  10:37 AM
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