KENORA, Ontario — A Canadian couple experienced first-hand the danger of distracted driving — and they caught it on video.

The camera mounted on their dashboard captured what the driver of a pickup truck was doing right before a wild crash.

It was a sunny day. The roads were clear. Ralph Ireland and his wife Ifka Falipovich were driving to their northern Ontario home from a business trip in Winnipeg. They were near Kenora, heading east along Highway 17.

Ireland had a camera mounted on his dash to catch anyone who might break into his truck.

Little did he know what that dashcam would capture. A pickup truck hauling a trailer pulled out in front of them. The other driver was charged with failing to yield to traffic.
After a trip to the hospital, Ireland and his wife assessed the damage.

Their truck was smashed, their camera was smashed but their memory card was intact.

And when they shared the video with friends, one of them pointed something out.

“It definitely looks like he was on his cell phone and it definitely looks like he’s looking down, he’s not looking out toward us, he’s not even looking out the front windshield,” Ireland said.

The video surfaced just as police announced that the leading cause of death on Ontario roads last year. It wasn’t impaired driving or speeding…it was distracted driving. […]