This really happened — surely among the worst nightmares an RVer could imagine. As an Australian couple slept in their camper trailer just before midnight Sunday, thieves carjacked their tow vehicle, which was still hooked up to the RV, and sped off down the highway. The couple had been sleeping in a rest area.
“It was like something out of a movie,” the male camper explained to a television news reporter. The woman was tossed out of the trailer, and sustained cuts and bruises which required treatment at a nearby hospital.
As the car and trailer speeded down the road, the man was able to hold on tightly and call police. But after about five miles, the four-wheel-drive car’s clutch failed and the thieves abandoned it and escaped. At last report, the police were searching for them, saying they knew who they were.
Watch the short news segment below (and perhaps consider unhitching your towable RV the next time you sleep in a rest area).
##RVT1119b
Not really what carjacking means. They stole the car and trailer.
Wow! That’s brazen. 🙁
Why did you post this? They’re not even in North America. Can’t hardly understand the silly accent.
a rather parochial view of this story from your post…does it have to happen to you to be interesting or a learning experience?
Crazy to steal an open TT…no one would notice that! We’d never feel safe O/N in a rest area in a soft-side RV. As it is, I worry about dry camping in our MH with the toad. We won’t leave the keys in it, so we’d have to drag it to get away quickly.
Let’s not advise unhitching at a rest stop. That looks too much like setting up camp, which we are NOT to do in public parking places because then it looks like we’re camping, not parking/sleeping, and that’s one more nail in the coffin against RVers overnighting in public parking.
sped not speeded
You may rightly prefer “sped”, that is fine. A number of references state that both “sped” and speeded” are correct, just as both “spelled” and “spelt” are correct, which many do not recognize. “Phony” and “phoney” are both correct as well. It is a strange language that we speak and spell.
Don’t forget, they left the keys in the car.
My friend lives in Australia and sent me a picture of what the trailer looked like setup. Only a dunce would take off with it opened up. I’d rather stay hooked up for leaving quickly. If someone steals my whole setup, I’ll come out shooting or ready to do so, but Australian folks can’t have guns.
I was also told that the couple had left their keys in their car. I can’t imagine who would do that. Also, I should note that some Australians can legally have guns with a license, but most do not, and self-defense is not a reason to have one there. I really dislike campgrounds with spaces close together because I can’t tell where the banging around (shutting car doors, etc.) comes from in the night.
I don’t think unhitching would be a good idea. Staying hooked up would provide more security, plus I’d have a surprise waiting for them when we finally stopped…
I wouldn’t call a tent camper a travel trailer, not by American standards.
that’s crazy. How high were the thieves to think that was a clever thing to do. We often thought that staying hooked up would reduce the risk of theft.
You’re only hearing about one instance in one rest area and no real clue as to what country, just that it was an Australian couple. So…I think you’re safe but that’s just my opinion. That and $5 will get you a cup of coffee.
Since it says an Australian couple, and they were driving on the wrong side of the road, and they speak with an Australian accent. It’s most likely Australia.
It is also 7 NEWS.com.au, and “triple 0” must be Australia’s 911. I think the Australian couple must have been in Australia.