Commercial Truck Accident

Published on: November 7, 2011

Drunk and Inattentive Trucker Kills Four Resulting in $15 million Judgment

by Stephen Bilkis

The accident that sparked this wrongful death lawsuit happened in 2005 when a husband and wife spent a weekend with friends in another city. They were on their way home, when they were stopped in a construction zone on the highway.

Minutes later, a tractor-trailer rammed into the whole line of traffic stopped for the construction zone, killing the husband and three others in the carnage. The wife sustained catastrophic injuries. Four years later, the court rendered its verdict; a $15 million settlement for the wife who lost her husband due to the negligence of the trucker, said a New York Trucking Accident Lawyer.

Sadly, although the judgment could have helped the family continue with their lives and made some reparation for the horrific ordeal, the trucking company won’t be paying it within the foreseeable future. They moved all of their assets, including their trucks, into four other business entities to avoid paying. No one even knows if the original company is in business any longer, stated the observer who has seen similar accidents in Manhattan and Queens.

Published on: November 4, 2011

Injured and Declining to sue, an Accident Survivor is Financially Strapped

by Stephen Bilkis

In some cases, the truth is stranger than fiction and this case has all of those elements; a bit of hard, cold truth and an old world element of what may be considered to be fiction, but, is also truth.

A 60-year old Amish woman who survived a very ugly tractor trailer crash that killed three and left more than a dozen others badly injured, has declined to sue the trucker who caused the accident, indicated a New York Trucking Accident Lawyer. That is the Amish way; not to take money from others when a situation is considered to be God’s will. And, according to God’s will, she would not participate in suing the man who killed her father.

The truck that hit them was fully loaded with scrap metal – 13 tons of it. The trucker had been driving for more than 86 hours over an 8-day period and was in violation of the hours of service regulations. He had been cited 41 times for fraudulently altering logbooks.

Published on: November 3, 2011

Off-Duty Firefighter Saves Lives

by Stephen Bilkis

Firefighters worked to remove the driver of an SUV after it crossed the median on an Oregon highway and hit a semi-truck. Another car flipped onto its roof during the incident.

“The driver of the black SUV was sent to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries,” a witness said.

One morning last week, an off-duty Portland firefighter and paramedic was driving southbound when he witnessed a small SUV a few cars ahead veer to the left, cross the median and strike a semi-truck in the opposite lanes. A third vehicle involved rolled onto its roof.

Published on: October 31, 2011

Logging Truck hit by car Kills Two and Injures Three

by Stephen Bilkis

The weather took a turn for the worse in this case and when it did, the consequences were not pretty.

Freezing mist was falling on the highway and those traveling it were hard-pressed to get any traction. They even had a hard time going the designated speed limit, as the road conditions were so treacherous. Further back down the highway, five people were headed north in a Pontiac G5. On another road, up ahead of the Pontiac, was an empty logging truck and trailer just pulling out onto the highway and about to start heading south, explained the NY Trucking Accident Lawyer.

The Pontiac had no idea the truck was there, as they were climbing a hill. When they hit the top of the crest and realized the truck was right in front of them, they tried to slow their forward momentum down. The ice was too bad and the wheels spun out of control, sending the vehicle directly into the path of the logging truck.

Published on: October 26, 2011

School Bus Meets Tractor Trailer in Deadly Wreck

by Stephen Bilkis

It was a deadly wreck and one which those who lost children will remember for the rest of their lives.

It was a horrendous wreck involving a school bus and an 18-wheeler. Thankfully, the trucking company came right out and owned up to the fact that they were fully accepting complete responsibility for the fatal collision indicated a New York Trucking Accident Lawyer.

In a move that many parents considered to be honest and upfront, the company indicated they understood the ramifications of the accident and were facing the consequences by doing everything they possibly could to deal with the situation. They understood the anguish of the parents who lost children in the crash.

Published on: October 17, 2011

Sometimes There Really are Guardian Angels on the Highways

by Stephen Bilkis

This was a case that warmed the hearts of many and shed a different light on truckers.

While most people consider 18-wheelers to be dangerous and deadly, it appears that there are truckers out there who will go to the max to help someone in distress. Such is the case here when a trucker was recently awarded a medal of excellence for saving a soldier’s life, indicated a NY Trucking Accident Lawyer.

It was a usual day at work driving a long haul truck, but it rapidly turned into something else when the trucker spotted a man who had been thrown from an overturned vehicle and was lying on his back, next to a guardrail. The quick thinking trucker maneuvered his big rig to protect the victim from oncoming traffic, called for help and stayed on the scene, offering aid, until the emergency response crews arrived.

Published on: October 14, 2011

Trucker Reaching for Cell Phone Kills Three

by Stephen Bilkis

It was a moment of inattention that cost three people their lives. Reaching for his cell phone on the dash board, a trucker lost track of where he was and rolled into a whole line of traffic, knocking cars out of the way like bowling balls.

The 51-year old trucker who was involved in an awful accident that killed three and left many others injured two years ago, was released from jail after serving 371 days of his sentence for involuntary manslaughter. The man had served a one year sentence; a sentence in part determined in consultation with the victims of the crash, explained a New York Trucking Accident Lawyer.

The facts of the case are that the trucker was momentarily distracted by reaching for his cell phone and while doing that, took his eyes off the road. The truck kept going and plowed into a line of vehicles sitting on the highway. The resulting chain reaction crash killed three and injured at least 14 others. The charges in this case were not filed until nine months after the crash, as it took that long to sort out the relevant details.

Published on: October 11, 2011

Semi Trailer Rolls Over and Closes Highway

by Stephen Bilkis

This case is an example of what “could” have happened if there had been any other vehicles around the semi that rolled on its side. That kind of a visual will bring a shock of fear to most people. Who wants to be involved in a wreck with a semi?

In this semi wreck, the big rig was heading north when it started to fishtail on slippery roads. As a result of the rear end doing its thing, the truck then rolled over on its side, blocking six lanes of traffic. Can you just imagine what would have happened if all six lanes had traffic in them when the truck went down, asked the New York Truck Accident Lawyer?

The driver walked from this crash without injuries and considered himself to be pretty lucky at that. But for the fact that there was no one else around at the time of the morning when the accident happened, both he and other drivers may have suffered severe injuries. As it was, it took emergency response crews at least six hours to repair a damaged guardrail before four lanes were reopened for use.

Published on: September 29, 2011

Trucker Reaching for Cell Phone Kills Three

by Stephen Bilkis

It was a moment of inattention that cost three people their lives. Reaching for his cell phone on the dash board, a trucker lost track of where he was and rolled into a whole line of traffic, knocking cars out of the way like bowling balls.

The 51-year old trucker who was involved in an awful accident that killed three and left many others injured two years ago, was released from jail after serving 371 days of his sentence for involuntary manslaughter. The man had served a one year sentence; a sentence in part determined in consultation with the victims of the crash, explained a New York Trucking Accident Lawyer

The facts of the case are that the trucker was momentarily distracted by reaching for his cell phone and while doing that, took his eyes off the road. The truck kept going and plowed into a line of vehicles sitting on the highway. The resulting chain reaction crash killed three and injured at least 14 others. The charges in this case were not filed until nine months after the crash, as it took that long to sort out the relevant details. In New York and Long Island authorities warn against this kind of behavior and the consequences.

Published on: September 18, 2011

Injured and Declining to sue, an Accident Survivor is Financially Strapped

by Stephen Bilkis

In some cases, the truth is stranger than fiction and this case has all of those elements; a bit of hard, cold truth and an old world element of what may be considered to be fiction, but, is also truth.

A 60-year old Amish woman who survived a very ugly tractor trailer crash that killed three and left more than a dozen others badly injured, has declined to sue the trucker who caused the accident, indicated a New York Truck Accident Lawyer. That is the Amish way; not to take money from others when a situation is considered to be God’s will. And, according to God’s will, she would not participate in suing the man who killed her father.

The truck that hit them was fully loaded with scrap metal – 13 tons of it. The trucker had been driving for more than 86 hours over an 8-day period and was in violation of the hours of service regulations. He had been cited 41 times for fraudulently altering logbooks.