Recent Truck Accidents in the Area
September 24, 2011
Maehalalea Beth Baxter was killed as a result of being hit by a Kenworth tractor-trailer. The accident occurred near Dad’s Restaurant located at 5061 Whitworth Road in Lavonia, GA. The tractor-trailer did not stop, and is currently being sought by the police.
Hit-and-run: Truck drivers are required by law and industry practices to stop after any collision and render aid to injured parties. A truck driver should be aware of his surroundings and know if his tractor or trailer has come into contact with a pedestrian. Many times the truck driver will claim that he did not “feel” the collision. However, the truck driver should be aware of his surroundings and recognize if he has even come close to striking a pedestrian. Even in a near-miss situation, the truck driver must stop and verify that the pedestrian was not injured. We have handled a number of pedestrian versus tractor-trailer collisions. You can view our case results, including a $3.25 million verdict in a Truck vs. Pedestrian accident, by clicking here.
June 29, 2011 – Highway 28
Cory Burns, a 16-year-old boy from Greenville, was killed when a tractor-trailer tried to pass his vehicle as his vehicle was making a left hand turn in Abbeville County, South Carolina. The boy was a passenger in the vehicle and was trapped inside for 30 minutes. He was extracted from the vehicle and Life Flighted to AnMed Health but later died. The driver of the car was Garrett Esser, and he was airlifted to Greenville Memorial Hospital. Esser was listed as being in critical but stable condition. The South Carolina Highway Patrol and the Abbeville County Police Department are investigating the crash.
Left Turns: Truck drivers should never pass slower moving vehicles on a two-lane road. It takes much longer for a tractor-trailer to accelerate and reach speeds sufficient to pass a slower vehicle. During that time period, the tractor-trailer poses a risk to drivers in both directions. Truck drivers are also trained to wait for vehicles in front of them to clear the roadway before overtaking or passing them. We have handled several cases involving truck drivers failing to yield to traffic or making illegal or dangerous maneuvers. You can view our case results by clicking here.
June 13, 2011 – U.S. 29 South
Two teenagers were killed, and four other people seriously injured in a collision in Anderson, South Carolina. The deceased teenagers, Peter Kovalishin and Michael Athens, were passengers in a Chevrolet Malibu that had pulled out of Trotter Road-Burt’s Garage Road onto U.S. 29 South when the Malibu was struck by a tanker truck. The driver of the Malibu was Ann Michelle Athens, 22, and the other occupants were Holly Athens, 18, Laura Lee Athens, 21, and Bess Athens, 16. The tractor-trailer driver, Andrew Brock, 58, was driving for Kenan Transport Company of Chapel Hill, N.C. and was not injured. The accident is being investigated by the MAIT team.
Noncommercial Vehicles Turning: Truck drivers have to look for vehicles turning onto their roadway from intersecting streets and driveways. The truck driver has to be aware of his surroundings because a slower moving vehicle can turn in front of him and if the truck driver has not paid attention to the turning vehicle, it will be too late for him to reduce his speed to avoid a rear-end collision. Truck drivers are trained to look for vehicles coming into their lane of travel and to reduce their speed before it becomes a problem. A rear-end accident is always preventable if the truck driver is paying attention to his surroundings. We have handled a number of rear-end collisions involving tractor-trailers and commercial vehicles. You can click here to see our case results.
South Carolina Law
Interstate trucking companies are governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (“FMCSR”), including trucking operations, driver qualifications, hours of service, maintenance of equipment, insurance, and alcohol and drug testing. South Carolina also has state specific regulations governing intrastate trucking companies. Intrastate trucking companies pick up and deliver loads only in the State of South Carolina and do not cross state lines. The South Carolina Department of Public Safety is responsible for motor carrier safety and has adopted many of the federal regulations as also being applicable to intrastate trucking companies. Under South Carolina law, intrastate trucking companies must have liability coverage for personal injuries in the amount of $750,000 ($300,000 if the gross vehicle weight is less than 10,000 lbs.). The laws governing hours of service are different for intrastate drivers in South Carolina as compared to federal laws governing interstate drivers.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one has been a victim of a trucking accident, you should contact a trucking attorney at Fried Rogers Goldberg LLC as soon as possible to make sure that evidence is preserved and not destroyed by the trucking company. You can contact us by calling 877-591-1801 or clicking here to email us.
No related posts.