Maryland Trucking Accident Lawyer Blog
It’s amazing when one considers that nearly 200 traffic accidents occur every hour around this country. As automobile, trucking and motorcycle accident lawyers, I and my colleagues are serious when we say that over-worked and over-tired trucker can cause some of the most serious, deadly and large-scale traffic accidents of any motor vehicle drivers on our roads. It’s really a matter of simple physics. With a combined vehicle weight upward of 50,000 pounds or more, the shear mass of an 18-wheeler far outstrips that of our miniscule passenger sedans, family minivans and even the largest of our sport utility vehicles.
To put it succinctly, as well-built as today’s passenger cars and SUVs they are no match against even a lightly-loaded or even an empty semi tractor-trailer rig. The steel structure surrounding a family sedan, which to you and me seems very strong and rigid, cannot very well withstand the impact from a large big rig weighing more than 10, 15 and sometimes 20 times that of the smaller passenger vehicle.
Having practiced for years as auto and trucking accident injury attorneys, the lawyers at Lebowitz & Mzhen have the skills to assist victims of serious traffic accidents recover costs associated with medical treatment, hospital stays and physical therapy. We know from our experience that trucking-related collisions are unlike other motor vehicle crashes. Understanding Maryland’s commercial vehicle law’s, as well as federal regulations governing the trucking industry is important in any case involving injury or death due to negligence on the part of a truck driver or his employer.
We are often reminded of the awful consequences whenever we see news reports of fatal trucking accidents like the one that occurred in Talbot County a little while ago. According to that new article, not only were the police investigating the causes of the accident itself, which apparently led to the eventual death of one person, but authorities were also interested in any information about two individuals who reportedly lent aid to the victim right after the crash.
Based on police reports, the traffic accident in question occurred on a Thursday afternoon along a stretch of Maryland’s Rte 328 near Easton, MD. News articles indicated that a Dodge minivan, reportedly owned by AAA Transport, was heading west when for some reason the vehicle veered into the opposing lane, striking a UPS delivery truck head-on. The driver of the UPS vehicle was apparently waiting to execute a left-hand turn from the eastbound lane of Rte 328 into an adjacent private driveway.
As a result of the impact, which occurred a little after 3pm not far from the Fisher Range Rd., the driver of the Dodge minivan was left in critical condition, apparently with life-threatening injuries. Information was a bit sketchy, but the news article suggested that witnesses saw two women dressed in hospital scrubs stop briefly at the accident scene and apparently render aid to the injured driver of the minivan.
While the driver of the UPS truck was not injured during the collision, the victim behind the wheel of the minivan did not survive. According to reports, not long after being transported to Easton’s Memorial Hospital, that person was pronounced dead. As for a specific cause, there was none given at the time of the news report. In cases such as this, however, driver error could have been a likely cause.
In some instances like this one, a life-threatening medical condition such as a heart attack or other major event, could have incapacitated the driver, causing him to lose control of the minivan and crash into the larger commercial truck. Otherwise, there is always a chance that a mechanical failure may have contributed to the wreck, though a police investigation would be necessary to determine such a cause.
In any case, because the victim died not long after being admitted to the hospital, it is understandable that the police would want to interview the two women who were seen at the crash site. At the time of the news article, authorities had yet to hear from anyone regarding the identities of those two individuals.
Police Continue Investigation into Easton Head-on Crash, WBOC.com, October 5, 2012