Staten Island

Published on: December 30, 2011

One Killed in T-Bone Collision with Mack Truck

by Stephen Bilkis

No one quite knows what made a man drive his Volvo right into the path of a Mack Truck. Although he was from another country, he surely would have known that the huge truck could not stop on time to avoid hitting him.

It appears that the man was at a stop sign along a highway and was trying to turn left onto it. He was behind a Dodge truck, also turning left. The Dodge made the turn and the man tried to follow right behind him, but instead of making the turn safely, he turned right into the path of an eastbound tri-axle truck and the truck accident ensued , reported the police.

The trucker had no place else to go and could not stop in time, explained the authorities, although there were skid marks extending for at least 15 yards from where the trucker did apply the brakes in an attempt to stop before the truck accident occurred.

Published on: December 27, 2011

Semi Driver Killed When Rig Leaves Road

by Stephen Bilkis

They say that the truth is often stranger than fiction and this case certainly points that out, said a report. The trucker in this case had no idea he was going to be involved in a fatal truck accidentthis day.

Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, the truck swerved off the road just before a highway exit and hit an abandoned minivan that was parked on the shoulder. The truck continued on down a steep embankment and slammed into a sound berm about 100 feet off the road and burst into flames. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, reported the observer.

This case could have turned out a lot differently had the trucker veered into traffic. The accident could have involved other vehicles and resulted in other fatalities. There are several major questions the police want answers to, not the least of which is what made the driver veer off the road? Had he fallen asleep at the wheel? Was he talking on a cell phone? Did a tire blow? Did his load shift? Was the steering defective? One thing the police do know is that speed and alcohol were not factors in the accident.

Published on: September 12, 2011

Speeding Big Rig Kills Mother and Daughter

by Stephen Bilkis

Although the police tracked down the suspected big rig driver in this fatal hit and run accident, he was choosing not to talk to them. Since he was not saying anything one way or another, the police had not moved to charge him, indicated the New York City Truck Accident Lawyer.

The police will make it a point to send a criminal complaint to the DA’s office, asking he be charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter. The facts of the case are heart-wrenching. A 56-year old woman and her 28-year old daughter were brutally killed in an intersection while crossing the street when a hit and run rig driver sped through the intersection and kept right on going. The daughter left behind a son, a newborn and a grieving husband.

According to eyewitnesses, both the women were in the crosswalk and had the right of way. The police were planning further investigations to determine if the driver was under the influence, texting, had defective brakes, was not paying attention to what he was doing or whether he was drifting off to sleep behind the wheel, said the New York Truck Accident Lawyer

Published on: September 7, 2011

A man driving a semi-truck hit two police patrol cars

by Stephen Bilkis

A man driving a semi-truck hit two police patrol cars near Ritzville, Washington. No one was seriously injured, but one of the patrolmen was taken to the local hospital after suffering a few injuries, reports a NY Truck Accident Lawyer. It is unclear at this time if the mechanical failure caused this accident or if the man driving the truck is to blame. There was no evidence of alcohol in the accident. In Long Island and Staten Island, drunk driving is considered a serious offense.

According to a Lawyer, two police patrol cars were sitting side-by-side on U.S. 395 when the accident occurred. The semi-truck went over the center divider and struck both cars. The policeman taken to the hospital has been on the police force for 19 years. The other policeman was not injured. The driver of the truck did not suffer any injuries either. The police are currently looking for any witnesses who may be able to provide additional details into how this accident occurred.

It is not uncommon for accidents like this to occur on major highways. The truck could have blown a tire or experienced some other type of malfunction or the driver could have momentarily fallen asleep or was driving too fast. The accident happened on a Sunday around 6pm. After the accident happened, the injured policeman was airlifted to a nearby hospital where his injuries were treated. He is in satisfactory condition. The officer should be released from the hospital soon. He may or may not need additional care once he leaves the hospital. Out-patient care may be necessary depending on the extent of his injuries. In Manhattan and Queens, hospitals are equipped to handle this type of case.

Published on: August 15, 2011

Coal Truck Rolls Over

by Stephen Bilkis

No one is sure what happened yet. But there is likely to be an investigation into what caused a coal truck to hit a ditch and roll over, killing the lone occupant, a 32-year old volunteer firefighter with 16-years experience and a history of working in the trucking industry.

Just recently, a funeral was held for a young firefighter and family man who was killed after the coal truck he was driving went off the road, into a ditch and rolled, indicated a New York Trucking Accident Lawyer In Staten Island and Westchester Counties, Lawyers and doctors are involved in these cases on a consistent basis.

The accident reports aren’t clear on precisely why the truck left the road, but it’s hoped that the results of an investigation may reveal what happened. There may be a possibility of faulty steering, brakes or tires, or driver distraction, but for now, this is only speculation which is difficult for his family to handle, but something they feel they need to know to get on with their lives.

Published on: June 13, 2011

Median Cables Saved Lives on I-90

by Stephen Bilkis

We have all seen them–Those gray or black cables that are stretched alongside of the highways. Some may complain that they are unsightly, and some police officers may complain that they impede them from crossing the median in pursuit of speeders. A New York Truck Accident Lawyer just learned of at least one incident that these supposedly unsightly or impeding cables were the best thing available that kept an accident from becoming much worse that it could have been.

The accident that we reference occurred April 4 on Interstate 90 in northern Illinois as the super highway wound into Illinois from Wisconsin. Authorities have told an Accident Law Firm that the driver of a 2010 Toyota Corolla, for an unknown reason, lost control of her vehicle. The 23-year old driver then veered into the median, struck the cables, rebounded back into the left lane of I-90 and into the path of an oncoming tractor-trailer. This impact resulted in the Corolla being forced back into the cables, which is where both the tractor-trailer and the Toyota came to rest. Both vehicles were kept from entering into the opposing lanes of traffic by the median cables.

When first responders arrived on the scene, they saw the Corolla resting almost beneath the left rear of the trailer, with the left front fender being well cut into by the cable. The front of the semi was a mangled mess, with the cables a solid 3 feet into the front of the truck. The NYC Truck Accident Attorney also discovered that the driver of the Toyota was cited on the scene for improper lane usage before she was transported to OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, where she was treated and released. The truck driver was uninjured.

Published on: June 12, 2011

Woman Killed in Truck Crash

by Stephen Bilkis

A 41 year old woman who was a resident of Scotts was fatally injured in a car-semi truck crash this afternoon on West Columbia Avenue, according to the initial investigation reports from a Manhattan Truck Accident Lawyer.

The woman was driving southbound on Columbia when she ran into the back of an empty tanker truck somewhere before 1pm today, were the reports that came in from authorities. It is unknown at this time the condition of the driver of the tanker truck, but he is believed to be okay right now. Investigation is pending, and the man will be questioned once it is known that he is in good health.

The 41 year old woman was pronounced dead at the scene, says the Manhattan Truck Accident Lawyer, after her Chevrolet Cavalier hit the truck hard, which was stopped as the driver prepared to turn left into Arlene’s Truck Stop, 4647 W. Columbia Ave. No one at the Truck Stop has said anything that led investigators to believe they knew they exact cause of this crash.

Published on: June 7, 2011

Jury Awards $13 Million for Truck Negligence

by Stephen Bilkis

A Florida jury has awarded $13 million to a mother and her daughter, a New York Truck Accident Lawyer has learned. The award is the result of a traffic accident that occurred in 2005 when the vehicle the woman’s daughter was a passenger in collided with a log truck. The log truck was attempting to make an illegal U-turn and had almost stopped as it stretched across the four-lane highway. It was at this time that the car that was driven by her then-boyfriend collided with the truck. Both then-17-year olds were injured, but the female received the worst injuries. As a result of this accident, she must live with permanent brain injuries, short-term memory loss, and physical impairments.

The jury found both the truck driver and the owner of the truck negligent. They determined this negligence was not only for the truck driver making an illegal U-turn, but also for many of the lights on the truck being inoperative, which made it much more difficult to see on the dark road. They also assessed some blame to the female for failure to wear a seatbelt, a NY Truck Accident Firm was told. The jury further added that the Florida Department of Transportation bore some responsibility for failing to place proper signage along the highway prohibiting U-turns. The young woman’s former boyfriend was also assigned some responsibility for his reaction to the situation but was not found negligent. A similar case in Staten Island or Long Island, NY would have a lawyer knowledgeable in this area on hand.

Sources further enlightened the Attorney that the same driver had been cited for running a red light two days prior to the accident.

Published on: June 2, 2011

Three Men Killed in Truck Collision in Florida

by Stephen Bilkis

Police have positively identified one of the three men who were killed in a March 30 collision with a tractor-trailer. The deceased was confirmed as a 32-year old male from Mexico, who was riding in the right front passenger seat in the van that crashed into the tractor-trailer on March 30 near Mayo, FL.

After studying the police report, a NY Truck Accident Attorney has learned that the three men were traveling northbound on State Route 349 in a 2002 Dodge Caravan. As the van approached the intersection of SR 349 and U.S. 27, they were supposed to stop at a stop sign, which they did not. The van proceeded into the intersection that was about to be occupied by a 1998 Freightliner semi-tractor pulling a trailer. The westbound tractor-trailer slammed into the right front fender of the Caravan, which spun the van around in a counter-clockwise motion, and following a brief course in a westerly direction, the van came to rest on the shoulder facing south.

Following the collision, the tractor-trailer, which had been traveling west, essentially jackknifed and wound up facing westbound on the eastbound shoulder with the trailer still in the road.