As Maryland automobile accident lawyers and personal injury attorneys, we speak from experience when we say that traffic accidents involving passenger cars and commercial trucks hardly ever end in favor of the smaller vehicle. With a gross weight on the order of 20 tons or more, a fully loaded semi tractor-trailer rig has as much mass as nearly 10 sport utility vehicles (SUVs), which makes any kind of highway accident a deadly proposition for the average motorist in a family car.
Furthermore, if a passenger car hasn’t much chance, then one can only imagine what the odds are for an economy car or motorcycle that tangles with a 18-wheeler on the expressway or undivided rural road. Needless to say, every passenger car and light truck driver should pay extremely careful attention whenever passing a tractor-trailer rig or other commercial truck. The watchword here is caution.
Even though we try to be careful, accidents continue to happen. A case in point is a crash that happened not long ago when a minivan crossed over the centerline and struck a tanker truck driven by a Baltimore truck driver. The crash happened just after 11am on a Tuesday morning and resulted in the death of the driver of the Chrysler Town and Country, 50-year-old Richard Baker.
According to police, Baker was headed west along a stretch of Rte 9 when for some reason his minivan crossed the centerline. In cases like this, driver error is usually suspected, however there have been instances where defective vehicle equipment, such as faulty steering components or poorly maintained tires may have been a factor. Police were apparently still investigating the crash at the time of the article.
Based on news reports, the collision resulted in a fire that damaged both vehicles. Not long after the crash, police arriving on the scene pulled Baker from his vehicle and attempted to revive him. Their attempts unfortunately failed and the man died from his injuries at the crash site.
The driver of the 2005 Mac tractor-trailer truck, 55-year-old George Cherrey of Baltimore, MD, was attended to at the scene by emergency responders for minor injuries and then transported to Beebe Medical Center where he was treated and subsequently released. According to police, the roadway was closed for approximately three hours due to the severity of the accident and the subsequent investigation by police.
UPDATED BREAKING NEWS: Route 9 crash leaves Georgetown man dead, WGMD.com, January 11, 2011