Charlotte Injury Lawyers Blog
Personal injury Lawyer Matt Arnold answers the question: “I was involved in a motor vehicle accident with injuries. Do I need a lawyer?”
Truck accidents can be extremely dangerous and this was the case with a serious accident that occurred with a logging truck on US Highway 601 in Surry County. The big rig was carrying a large load of logs when it crossed the center line and flipped over. The accident caused the truck to spill its logs onto the roadway. One of the large timbers hit a Nissan traveling in the opposite direction and caused it to crash into an embankment, killing the driver and the child passenger. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Truck Accidents are Among the Most Serious
Accidents that occur between large commercial trucks and passenger vehicles are among the most serious and the most deadly. Trucks can weigh as much as 80,000 pounds, making them difficult to maneuver and stop. In this instance, the reason the truck lost control is not yet known. However, when the truck veered off the road, it overturned causing the logs to become loose. A truck might lose a load because it was not properly secured or if it was not loaded according to proper standards. For example, a load that is not balanced adequately could cause a shift in the load that might result in an accident and in losing the cargo entirely.
Truck Accident Investigation
Truck accidents can be extremely complex and require extensive accident investigation. The police generally conduct an investigation immediately after an accident such as this one. They will review the details of the accident and take witness statements to try to find out what caused the crash. In this case, we know that the Nissan was not at fault because the vehicle was driving in the opposite direction and was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time when the timber fell onto it.
Further investigation is often necessary to prove that a driver is at fault in a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit. A team of reconstruction experts may be necessary to find the cause and contributing factors of the crash. The causes of truck accidents fall into three general categories including human error, mechanical failure, and road or weather conditions. There are often several or more factors that contribute to any particular truck crash. For example, the driver may have been tired or inexperienced, the load might not have been properly secured and the truck could have experienced mechanical issues. A truck driver without enough experience may not know how to recover control of the truck if the load starts to shift, for instance.
What to Do After a Truck Accident
If you are involved in an accident with a truck, you will want to contact the police immediately. Law enforcement will take control of the traffic and seek medical help for you and others. Always get medical attention, even if you do not immediately feel hurt since some injuries can worsen over time. Take photos of the accident area if it is safe to do so. Contact a personal injury attorney as soon as possible. Your attorney will need to take steps to quickly obtain information and evidence from the truck driver and trucking company.
If you or someone you love was hurt in a truck accident, or any other accident, contact our skilled legal team at Arnold & Smith, PLLC, at (704) 370-2828 for a free consultation.
The skilled personal injury attorneys at Arnold & Smith, PLLC are dedicated to maximizing the financial recovery and obtaining justice for every personal injury client injured by another party’s negligence. The issues our personal injury clients may be facing include, but are not limited to, slip and fall injuries, wrongful death, product liability, catastrophic injuries, dog bite claims, car and truck accident injuries, motorcycle injuries, traumatic brain injury (TBI), nursing home negligence, spinal cord injury, boating accidents, and defective medical device injury. Our personal injury attorneys understand the devastating impact such an injury can have on a person’s life, and that the effects so often go beyond physical pain and suffering. The personal injury attorneys at Arnold & Smith, PLLC are dedicated to helping clients determine the strength of their claims, and to aggressively pursuing the means necessary to achieve the best possible end result for each client’s particular situation.
Source:
2 killed after log truck flips on Highway 601: NC troopers | Charlotte Observer
The Large Truck Crash Causation Study – Analysis Brief | FMCSA (dot.gov)
Image Credit:
https://www.freeimages.com/photo/truck-accident-1450067
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