Single-truck Accidents

Truck Driver Killed When Trailer Detaches from Truck

June 13, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Earlier this month in Arbutus, Maryland, a truck driver was killed when the trailer he was towing inexplicably detached from the truck and sent the truck careening over a bridge embankment. According to a report by WBALTV 11, the truck driver was heading south on Interstate 95 near the Patapsco River bridge around 11:30 in the morning when the trailer he was towing became detached from the truck.

The truck driver lost control of the truck and crashed into the side of the bridge embankment, going right over it. The truck fell to the ground and landed in a park below before it caught fire. The truck driver was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. He was the only person in the truck, and no other people were injured in the accident.

Police are not sure what caused the trailer to separate from the truck, and they are investigating the accident in hopes of finding out more information. Investigators are unsure how fast the truck was traveling when the trailer separated from the truck.

Tractor-Trailer Crashes in Delaware, Spilling Millions of Bees onto the Highway

May 25, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In one of the odder accident stories we have seen in a while, a tractor-trailer carrying millions of bees crashed on a Delaware highway last week. According to a report by a local ABC affiliate, the truck driver was heading north from Florida when he lost control of the truck while negotiating the ramp from Route 896 to I-95.

Apparently, as the truck driver took the turn onto the on-ramp, the boxes housing the bees shifted, causing the truck to overturn and slam into the guardrail. As the truck toppled over, the crates containing the honey bees fell off the flat-bed truck and onto the ground, bursting open and spilling the bees into the air.

It is estimated that 16-20 million European honey bees escaped after the accident. The driver of the truck and one of his passengers were each stung between 50 and 100 times. They were taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries. The driver was also cited for carrying dangerous cargo without the proper permits.

Truck Driver in Training Gets in Accident that Shuts Down Route 301 for Hours

February 26, 2014 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A few weeks ago in Sudlersville, a single-truck accident closed down Route 301 for hours while emergency crews cleared the scene. According to a report by MyEasternShoreMD.com, the accident occurred just before 7 a.m. on Route 301 near the intersection of 290. The police report explains that “the truck careened off of a guardrail on the slow shoulder, crossed both travel lanes and struck a bridge embankment.”

Luckily, no other vehicles were hit or otherwise involved in the accident. The truck, however, sustained heavy damage and took hours to get off the highway.

As it turns out, the driver of the truck was from Detroit, Michigan and was not legally permitted to operate the truck because he only had a Class A learner’s permit. The other driver, who was supposed to be the one behind the wheel, was asleep in the sleeping portion of the vehicle when the accident occurred. The trucking company claims that they were not aware that the inexperienced driver was operating the truck.

Maryland State Authorities Respond to Hazardous Truck Crash on Route 113

May 24, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A single vehicle accident closed Route 113 near Berlin earlier this week, when a truck pulling a trailer crashed and dumped 80 gallons of hydrochloric acid on the roadway.

According to reports, Maryland State Police officers responded to a single vehicle accident on Route 113 at Dee Park Drive near Berlin, shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday morning. They discovered that a 2007 truck pulling a trailer had driven off of the left side of the road, struck a guardrail, and came to rest near the center median.

The truck’s trailer contained approximately 80 gallons of hydrochloric acid, which was punctured during the accident. As a result, relevant fire and state and local hazardous waste management agencies responded to the scene. Additionally, the Maryland State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division conducted a thorough inspection of the truck and trailer, in order to investigate the potential cause of the accident.

The driver of the truck, who was later charged with negligent driving, was transported via ambulance to a local hospital for treatment of unreported injuries. His passenger was unharmed.

Injury Accident News: Maryland Trucker Charged with Drunken Driving after Near-Accident on I-70

March 31, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

One of the most common causes of commercial trucking accidents in the U.S. is driver fatigue usually brought on by lack of sleep and excessive hours behind the wheel. Although federal regulations limit the number of on-the-road hours that a commercial truck driver can work behind the wheel, it is no secret that many truckers bend or break these rules on a fairly frequent basis. Spurred by on-time or early delivery bonuses, as well as the occasional unspoken negative incentive, some truckers may feel they have to exceed the federally mandated Hours-of-Service rules in order to make a living.

Unfortunately, in making a living in this way, sometimes these commercial driver get into traffic accidents, which may or may not involve fatalities; and many times trucking-related wrecks caused by driver fatigue produce injuries, not just to the driver himself, but to innocent victims who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Other causes of tractor-trailer accidents can include distraction from any number of sources, such as cellphones, smartphones, in-cab navigation devices, audio systems, or any other electronic device that takes the truckers attention away from the task at hand. Speeding and faulty vehicle maintenance can also be common areas that a personal injury attorney might need to consider when formulating a case against a negligent truck driver or commercial trucking company.

Two Tractor-Trailers Overturn in Separate Maryland Trucking Accidents; No Serious Injuries Reported

March 16, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

It’s hard to imagine something as large and apparently stable as an 18-wheeled tractor-trailer flipping on its side, but events like this actually happen more often that one might think. And when one of these large commercial vehicles crashes and turns over, you had better not be near it when it does. To be caught in that kind of roadway collision is only to invite potential injury or possible death.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my staff of legal professionals have seen the victims of commercial trucking accidents and we fully understand the destructive power that these people experienced during their ordeals. Life-threatening events such as a bad roadway collision with a large delivery truck or big rig semi can alter one’s view of what is and isn’t safe on the road today.

With a mass equal to nearly 20 normal-sized passenger sedans, a fully-loaded tractor-trailer rig is one formidable machine. And while most truckers are hard-working and conscientious people, there are some drivers who are less concerned about the safety of others which who they must share the road. It’s this smaller group of bad drivers that can cause most of the pain and grief on the expressways and surface streets around Maryland.

Trucker Loses Control of 18-Wheeler in Frederick County Collision; Kills Two People, Injures Three

February 26, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Whether a commercial trucking accident case involves catastrophic claims, punitive damages and/or multiple defendants, a plaintiff will usually benefit from the valuable advice and skills provided by a qualified personal injury attorney experienced in trucking-related traffic collisions. Here in the Baltimore area, it’s not difficult to hear of or read about many traffic-related accidents every week. As automobile and motorcycle injury accident lawyers, I and my staff of legal professionals know first-hand the extent to which victims of these kinds of roadway collisions suffer through their pain and rehabilitee following a bad crash.

When it comes to trucking accident litigation, we understand the stress and worry that victims and their families can experience when filing a personal injury lawsuit or wrongful death claim against a large company with extensive resources at its disposal. This fact, however, does not mean that one’s claim is irrelevant or should be swept under the rug. To the contrary, truck drivers and the companies that employ them have a responsibility to the general public. And when a mistake has been made, especially one that has resulted in serious injury or death, the responsible party must answer for it.

As many people already understand, at least intrinsically, a personal injury lawsuit involving a trucking-related traffic accident differs in many ways from that of a common automobile accident case. Whereas passenger car accidents involve more much cut-and-dried elements, cases covering injuries or fatalities resulting from a commercial truck wreck require particular expertise. This is why it is always good to seek out the best possible legal representation when you or a loved one has been hurt in a serious trucking-related collision.

Maryland State Patrol Officer Survives Close Call with Commercial Motor Vehicle on Interstate 70

January 16, 2013 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The unfortunate and mostly unavoidable side-effect of modern day motoring is that large and small vehicle alike end up sharing Maryland’s high-speed and congested thoroughfares. Regardless if one lives or works in Germantown, Glenn Burnie, Waldorf or the District, the potential for an accident involving a commercial delivery truck, semi tractor-trailer, or even a commercial repair van is ever-present across our state.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, we serve the victims of car, truck and motorcycle accidents who have been sent to the hospital with serious to life-threatening injuries all because of another individual’s error in judgment or simple careless actions. Thousands of innocent people are hurt or killed annually by negligent driving attributed to operators of 18-wheelers, flatbed tractor-trailers, commercial box trucks and gasoline or chemical tankers. We understand how a simple drive to the mall or a trip to the supermarket can end in weeks or months of medical treatment, physical pain and difficult rehabilitation.

Many auto accidents in here in Maryland typically happen on some of the more frequented byways, such as Interstate 695 (also known as the Baltimore Beltway), the Baltimore-Washington Pkwy (I-295), Interstate 95, and I-495/Washington Beltway. Simply bad driving, possibly overworked truckers, and illegally loaded and oversized trailers are just a few of the dangers that can confront Maryland drivers on a daily basis.

Commercial Propane Tanker Truck Hits Cecil County Condos, Driver Injured in Wreck

October 9, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Whether you live or work in Maryland or over in the District of Columbia, if you are a driver you no doubt commute in the company of many different types of commercial vehicles, such as the smaller panel vans and contractor utility trucks all the way up to large box trucks, tanker vehicles and big rig 18-wheelers. As any motorist knows, at least innately, it’s that they never want to get into an accident with one of these larger motor vehicles for fear of the possibly extreme injuries and potential fatal consequences that a highway collision can entail.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my legal staff know the feeling of being “cornered” by a large commercial vehicle. While many passenger car accidents can leave the victims in very bad condition (with weeks, if not months of recovery ahead of them), tangling with a semi tractor-trailer can raise the odds of being critically injured or killed many times over. Add to that the possibility that the truck involved is carrying a flammable load or other dangerous cargo, well, the possible scenarios can be downright scary to even imagine.

Receiving severe injuries, such as head trauma, spinal damage, or complex internal injuries is nothing compared to being caught in a burning car with immobilizing injuries limiting one’s ability to escape. In such cases, all a person can do is hope for a Good Samaritan to put themself at risk or that emergency responders will arrive before it’s too late. Frankly, the thought of a car fire is too terrifying for most people to even consider. Throw into that mix a car carrying a family with young children and it could be an unfathomable tragedy beyond words.

Commercial Lumber Truck Crashes near Baltimore, Igniting Fire and Killing Driver on Interstate 95

September 25, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

We’ve said it before, but trucking accidents are an unfortunate part of the automotive landscape here in Maryland. With the tens of thousands of passenger cars, truck and motorcycles all sharing the road with each other, it’s amazing that more accidents do not happen on a regular basis. But when it comes to collisions involving commercial vehicles, we are all in greater danger as occupants of much smaller and less massive passenger cars.

As Baltimore auto accident attorneys, I and my colleagues see just a fraction of the thousands of innocent people who are injured every year across the United States as a result of being caught up in a collision with a tractor-trailer, 18-wheeler, tanker truck, of large commercial delivery vehicle. Obviously, the sheer size and mass of these motor vehicles — approaching 20-times the weight of an average sport utility vehicle or family minivan — makes these trucks intrinsically more dangerous than other cars and trucks on the roadways.

As motorists ourselves, we have each at one time or another driven slowly past the site of a commercial vehicle accident on the expressway or country road. The destruction that such a large and heavy vehicle can cause to cars, light trucks and motorcycles is sobering to say the least. Weighing in at upward of 80,000 pounds, a commercial vehicle whose driver has lost control, for whatever reason, can easily wreck serious havoc on other passenger vehicles and bystanders. Serious and fatal injuries are not uncommon in these instances.