It's been a rough couple of weeks for my KFOR friend and co-worker Abby Broyles.
As I explained a couple of weeks ago, Abby didn't handle the news of Joleen Chaney's KFOR return very well. In the days following her emotional outburst, she roamed the halls of our studios like a confused zombie, careful not to look anyone in the eye, and constantly referring to the people in the production room as "little spies." She even refused to eat Scott Hines' delicious banana nut bread. It was crazy.
As a result, our news director gave Abby a week off work to recover and get her mind off things. Abby then did what anyone who's looking for a little rest and relaxation does and went on a Thelma and Louise style road trip in the New Mexico desert with former Harper County District Court Judge Megan Simpson. Fortunately, before they got to the Grand Canyon, the sunroof exploded on their car. This event snapped Abby out of her daze, and she quickly returned to Oklahoma to file this totally real report.
Via KFOR:
It can happen in an instant, sparking a hazardous situation on the road.
Exploding sunroofs happen more often than you think, including to one of our own reporters.
“It was quite shocking. I think my heart rate was considerable,” Megan Simpson said.
Simpson and Newschannel 4’s Abby Broyles were on a deserted highway in New Mexico when they heard what sounded like a shotgun being fired inside their vehicle.
“I’ve never, ever seen anything like that before, it’s just simply unheard of,” Simpson said.
Turns out, hundreds of complaints about exploding sunroofs have been filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration...
It was about 106 degrees when our sunroof exploded.
Thankfully, the visor between it and the cabin was closed, preventing shattered glass from showering on us.
Once we got to a dealership for a quick fix to get home, every employee stopped by to see the car.
“It was almost like seeing a chupacabra or something, they just kind of gathered around andlooked at it because it was just something they hadn’t seen,” Simpson said.
Unfortunately, experts say once there’s a chip in your safety glass, there isn’t muchyou can do to prevent the possibility of an exploding sunroof, but controlling how hot it gets does make a difference.
That's interesting. I had no clue there was a chance that the sunroof on my car can explode while, uhm, driving down a hot deserted New Mexico highway. I'm glad Abby shared this harrowing account, and let us know there's a chance it could happen.
That being said, could Abby maybe explain in a little more detail what exactly she and a former Oklahoma District Court judge were doing driving down a deserted highway in New Mexico in the middle of July, and to take things further, where they buried the body? I think that would be way more interesting than a bit about an exploding sunroof. Also, it would also possibly explain why her mood around the office is suddenly a bit more cheery, and why she now leaves scribbled notes on Joleen's cubicle that read "I'm the one who knocks!"
