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Published on: May 26, 2012

Increases in fatal tractor-trailer crashes leads to a goal to increase its laws and regulations

by Stephen Bilkis

Lawyers say they and other truck driving lawyers plan to increase laws and regulations in an effort to better protect other drivers from debilitating or fatal crashes involving tractor-trailers.

In Missouri, for example, there has been a long stretch of fatal 18-wheeler accidents in the past six months. Attorneys there are advocating for stricter enforcement from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations in Missouri.

In one particular crash that was reported recently, a truck driver, who was distracted only for what he claimed was only a moment, drifted to another lane and caused a pileup of seven cars. The crash reportedly caused two deaths and several serious injuries.

Published on: May 23, 2012

14 Dead as Tour Bus Slid into Pole

by Stephen Bilkis

Fourteen people have been confirmed dead following a horrific crash of a tour bus in The Bronx, New York, over the weekend. The tour bus was returning from a night out for its passengers at the Mohegan Sun Casino in eastern Connecticut. The 40-year old bus driver survived the crash and had told investigators that a passing tractor-trailer had clipped the bus thereby causing him to lose control of the vehicle before overturning and skidding almost 500-feet into a highway sign whose support structure then sliced through the bus.

While the investigation is still ongoing, there are some who are not quite as certain of the bus driver’s accounts; Investigators have been hearing witness and survivor accounts of the bus having driving across the rumble strips multiple times before the bus overturned. Rumble strips are placed along the shoulders of many highways in order to alert drivers whenever they are leaving the travelled portion of the roadway and are heading for the edge of the pavement. This system is put into place in large part to “wakeup” drivers who may be beginning to nod off.

There were 32 people on board the bus when it crashed – The 14 who perished, 17 survivors, and the driver. Of the 17 passengers who survived the crash, there were five who were critically injured, two suffered serious injuries, and eleven who suffered only minor injuries.

Published on: May 21, 2012

18-Wheeler Hits Car Then Overturns

by Stephen Bilkis

Added to a series of accidents involving tractor-trailers nationwide this year, a tractor-trailer hits a car before it overturns. Local authorities near Shreveport, LA, are in the process of cleaning up a two-vehicle collision involving a tractor-trailer and a car.

This accident occurred on southbound I-49 about 1a.m. Sunday. It began with the driver of the tractor-trailer becoming distracted while reaching for a bag of potato chips. While reaching for these chips, he allowed the truck to veer into the lane to his left. By the time the driver realized what had happened, he attempted to correct his path but in so doing, he wiped out the vehicle that was in the left lane. It was at this point that both vehicles overturned after leaving the roadway. Accidents like this are unusual in Manhattan and Long Island.

First responders arrived at the accident scene within minutes, rerouted traffic as necessary, and attended to the injured. Both the driver of the tractor-trailer and the driver of the car received life-threatening injuries. The car driver was stabilized for transport, airlifted from the accident scene, and taken to LSU Medical Center, where she remains in intensive care (ICU) in critical condition.

Published on: May 19, 2012

Change in Rules Needed for Truck Driver Fatigue,

by Stephen Bilkis

The current laws and regulations that inhibit truck driver fatigue have proven to be ineffective, reports an authority . A recent National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) ruling on an accident that occurred in 2008, regarding a tractor-trailer driver that had failed to notice that traffic had stopped in front of him and collided with an SUV on I-44 in Oklahoma. The semi-truck then proceeded to override three additional vehicles thereby setting off a chain reaction amongst the vehicles.

The NTSB ruled last fall that driver fatigue was the deciding factor due to the driver experiencing acute sleep loss. The NTSB further went on to add that the current federal regulations fail to address the issue of driver fatigue, a TV Station was told. The NTSB has made specific recommendations to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regarding how to address truck driver fatigue. Some of their changes include:

• Creating comprehensive fatigue management plans for commercial drivers

Published on: May 16, 2012

Bus Swerved Before Crash

by Stephen Bilkis

During their investigation of the tragic bus accident in the Bronx last weekend, investigators have learned that the bus swerved many times before overturning onto its side and skidding into a pole thereby killing fourteen people, a reporter has learned.

While many of the eyewitness accounts may vary depending on their recollection, most of them attest to the bus having swerved onto the rumble strips that are located on the shoulder of the highway multiple times before the bus crashed, a policeman was told. Rumble strips are placed on the side of the road in order to alert drivers whenever they drive near the edge of the pavement.

The bus driver has stated that the bus was clipped by a tractor-trailer, which caused him to lose control. Investigators have recovered a dash camera that was mounted on the front of the bus, as well as an engine-control module, so they may further investigate what was in front of the bus as well as the bus’ speed and other parameters to assist in their investigation. The engine-control module has been sent to a laboratory in Washington, D.C. The truck driver that is to have allegedly struck the bus has contacted the state police voluntarily and both he and his employer are cooperating with authorities. Authorities have also located both the trailer and the tractor that the bus driver alleges to have clipped the bus, and have taken them both in for analysis.

Published on: May 14, 2012

Hero Pulls Injured Man from Truck Before Fire

by Stephen Bilkis

As part of a Lawyer’s ongoing commitment to fair and accurate reporting of accident incidents, we have learned that a Maryborough, Victoria, Australia, man is being called a hero for rendering aid to an injured truck driver on March 12.

The incident occurred at about 6:20pm, Saturday March 12, on the Bendigo-Maryborough Rd at Havelock, when the driver of a semi-trailer had apparently driven off the road, due to as of yet unknown reasons. The truck then turned over and rolled through some trees. By the time the truck had rolled to a stop, it had burst into flames.

A passing motorist, the local police are not releasing his name at this moment, stopped his vehicle and proceeded to the burning truck where he pulled the badly injured truck driver from the raging inferno mere moments before the truck became completely engulfed in flames.

Published on: May 12, 2012

Minivan and Truck Collided in Levittown

by Stephen Bilkis

While the investigation into the cause of the truck accidentare unclear due to the ongoing investigation, a rep has learned that the collision between a box-truck and a minivan have learned the persons from both vehicles hospitalized, with the driver of the minivan in serious condition.

The accident occurred at the intersection of Hempstead Turnpike and Division Avenue this past Friday at about 1:58am. The details of the accident are still sketchy, but it appears to have been a rear-end collision, that resulted in the entire front end of the minivan impacted into the left rear corner of the truck’s left rear corner, and was at least partly underneath the truck. The degree of the impact completely totaled the minivan.

First Responders from the local police, fire, and other emergency management services were quick to arrive on the scene. Their combined efforts kept a bad situation from becoming even worse, as traffic was diverted safely around the accident scene and any potential for fire was carefully monitored and prepared for.

Published on: May 9, 2012

One Confirmed Dead Following Collision with Fire Truck

by Stephen Bilkis

Sources have confirmed that one-person lie dead following a collision between the van that he was a passenger in and a fire truck. It has been reported that the fire truck was responding to a call when it struck a van that was making a left turn in front of the fire truck. Although the van had a green light when its driver initiated the turn, the fire truck struck the van on its left rear, thereby demolishing part of the van and killing one of the eight passengers. Six of the passengers and six firefighters were hospitalized with minor injuries, and two more whose conditions were listed as critical.

The 51-year old deceased man was identified to a Lawyer as a long-time resident of a state group home that is located in Willowbrook. The van was transporting individuals from the home to a day program that is offered by the Lifestyles for the Disabled. He was described as one who was always smiling and as being happy-go-lucky. He was also a competitor in Staten Island’s Special Olympics for the past several years.

The fire truck was responding to a reported fire, which turned out to be an overheated vehicle, and at the time of the accident had its lights and sirens activated. Immediately after the accident, the firefighters’ mission changed to that of rescuers and exited their vehicle to render aid to the accident victims. Firefighters had to use a hydraulic tool in order to extricate the victims from the van.

Published on: May 7, 2012

School Bus and Semi Crash on Oregon Hwy

by Stephen Bilkis

A witness reported that a school bus and a semi truck collided near Gaston, on Oregon 47 last Tuesday. The bus driver and nine students were taken to a local hospital and treated for minor injuries. The 57-year old truck driver was not injured in the accident, and was cited for careless driving for his part in the collision.

The crash occurred at approximately 7:40am when the bus had stopped to pickup students on their way to school. The bus had its warning lights on, when the truck rounded the curve. The truck driver applied the trucks brakes in an effort to stop. It was then that the tractor-trailer fishtailed across the road and hit the bus as it went into a ditch. Almost immediately after the accident, the driver of the semi went to the school bus to see if he could render assistance to those who were injured.

The accident scene was not want for eyewitness accounts, as this particular bus stop is a central location where many students are picked up each morning, and there were many parents on the scene who witnessed the accident. One witness told a cop that it appeared to him that the truck was going too fast as it rounded the curve. While the trooper on the scene who was investigating the accident stated that, he did not think the truck’s speed was “grossly out of line for the area.” The trooper also added that while the suggested speed for the curve is set at 45mph, the speed limit for that particular road is 55mph. Another of the witnesses stated that this makes the fourth semi-involved accident that has occurred in the local area over the past year, and they hope that warning lights will be installed, like they have been in Nassau and Suffolk, so as to warn drivers of the potential hazards that lie ahead.

Published on: May 5, 2012

Tour Bus and Semi Collide Killing One

by Stephen Bilkis

One woman was killed and four others were injured after a tour bus and a tractor-trailer collided Saturday night. The truck accident occurred just after 7pm on Highway 33 in the town of Herman, which is approximately five miles west of Allenton, WI, after the semi-driver reportedly failed to yield to the bus at the intersection of Highway 33 and Highway P, and the semi slammed into the bus.

Immediately after the collision, the bus flipped twice and slid into the ditch, witnesses have told the police. Law enforcement officials at the scene stated that the accident could have been much, worse than it was, had the bus been fully laden with passengers. The 52-year old driver and the surviving passenger, also a 75-year old woman, were all transported to different local hospitals for treatment. Their current medical conditions are unknown as of the time of this article.

While the bus lay on its side in the ditch, the truck (a cabover with the truck cab over top of the engine) was raised up and over to the side and was completely mangled due to the crash. The 30-year old driver and the 30-year old passenger of the semi were not quite as fortunate, for both had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital. The highway was closed due to the accident for more than six hours. Firefighters were watchful for any signs of fire and were concerned with any fuel that could spill either from the overturned bus, or from the mangled semi-truck.