Chicago Truck Accident Lawyer Blog

With their semi-trucks, tractor-trailers, semi-trailers, and other large trucks weighing and carrying thousands of pounds, truck drivers cannot afford to drive carelessly or recklessly in any way. Taking their eyes off the road for just a few seconds, such as when retrieving a text message, can prove catastrophic for pedestrians and the occupants of the other vehicle in the event that a Chicago truck accident were to occur. Drowsy driving, or even worse, falling asleep at the steering wheel, kills many people each year, as does failure to stop at red light.

Another type of bad driver behavior that can cause catastrophic Chicago, Illinois truck crashes is drunk driving. Driving under the influence of drugs or heavy medication can slow down the trucker’s reaction time, cause blurry vision, poor coordination, and disorientation, impair the abilities to reason and act swiftly, and lead to blackouts. All of these side effects can turn a truck driver into a very dangerous motorist who has lost the ability to drive safely and keep his/her large vehicle in control.

As a Chicago truck accident victim, it is important that you do not speak with the trucking company or their insurance company without exploring your legal options first. Some trucking companies will try to persuade you to settle immediately. While this option may seem like the solution to the expenses you will likely incur because of the damage to your vehicle, any medical and recovery expenses, and the time that you need to take off work to recover, you don’t want to sign away your right to receive all the compensation that you are owed—especially once the full extent of your injuries and other costs can be assessed.

Drinking & Driving, Alcohol: Problems and Solutions

Impaired Driving, CDC

Related Web Resources:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

DUI, Illinois State Police

A tractor-trailer crash on Friday on Interstate 79 involving a stopped GMC Sonoma pickup truck has left one woman dead and one man with injuries. The deadly semi-truck accident happened after the pickup truck had stopped in a driving lane.

A few items had fallen out of the pickup truck’s bed and the driver had stopped the vehicle to collect them. While other motorists were able to drive around the GMC, the tractor-trailer struck the smaller truck.

The female motor vehicle crash victim was pronounced dead at the truck accident site. The man was airlifted to a local hospital.

In other recent tractor-trailer accident news, four people were hurt on July 19 when a semi-truck and a pickup truck collided on a highway. The large truck was transporting hazardous materials, and sulfuric acid spilled onto the road.

The four truck accident victims were flown to a hospital. Hazmat crews arrived to help clean up the spill. Investigators are still trying to determine what caused the semi-truck accident.

On June 22, a 17-year-old boy, who is being called “Miracle Man”, survived getting hit by a Frelightline semi-trailer while he was on his bicycle. The semi-truck crash happened as trucker Corey Fowler was pulling out of a Home Depot parking lot. Devon says he “got sucked up” under the large vehicle but remained conscious as the truck dragged him sixty feet.

He sustained road rashes and broke five bones. As the truck was pulling him over the asphalt, skin was getting scraped off his back, arms, face and legs. Devon says that his right foot was seared from the engine’s heat because his pant leg got caught in the semi-trailer’s axle.

Miracle boy: Teen hit, dragged by semi-truck talks about surviving, Naples News, July 26, 2010

Woman dies in I-79 wreck: Tractor-trailer hits stopped GMC pickup, InsuranceNewsNet, July 24, 210

Related Web Resources:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Fatality Analysis Reporting System, NHTSA

Continue reading " Tractor-Trailer Accident Involving Stopped Pickup Truck Kills Woman " »

An Illinois truck crash on I-57 has left one man in serious condition. The traffic collusion occurred when a construction truck rear-ended a semi-tractor carrying compressed hydrogen gas canisters. According to Illinois State Police, this is the third Illinois motor vehicle crash in the last 10 days.

Our Chicago truck accident lawyers know how important it is to start gathering and preserving evidence immediately after a serious collision. Not only do we work with accident reconstruction experts who know how to determine exactly what happened, but we have the experience and dedication to do the job our clients hire us to do right. We even have a doctor on staff that can evaluate your injuries, treatment costs, and any future care that you will likely require.

Chicago, Illinois truck accidents are complex cases to pursue and the injuries resulting from them can be quite serious and expensive. Unfortunately, catastrophic truck crashes happen on a regular basis.

Just this Tuesday, Olympic rowing champion James Cracknell bruised his brain and sustained a gash to the back of his head when he was injured during a truck accident. Cracknell was thrown off his bicycle. Fortunately, he was using a crash helmet.

Whether the negligent party is the truck driver, another motorist, a trucking company, the entity responsible for maintaining a road and keeping it free of road defects or debris, or the manufacturer of a defective vehicle or auto part, it is important that you are represented by a Chicago truck accident law firm that will fight for your right to financial recovery while protecting your legal rights.

Iroquois County: Trucks collide on I-57; 3rd accident in 10 days, Daily Journal, July 23, 2010

Olympian James Cracknell in hospital with 'fractured skull' after truck knocks him off bike, MailOnline, July 22, 2010

Related Web Resources:
FMCSA

Skull fracture, MedlinePlus

Nearly nine years after suffering “full-body whiplash” when the car she was riding struck a dead horse on the road, Nanette Aurdal has been awarded a $2.7 million truck accident verdict by a civil jury. Aurdal, 44, continues to experience constant pain from her injuries, which she sustained in December 2001. Her family-owned gas station had to be shut down because she could no longer work the amount of hours required to run the business.

Telephone company employee John Burston accidentally killed the horse when he struck it with the truck he was driving. However, rather than use the safety equipment (reflective triangles, traffic cones, and flares) that were in the vehicle to warn other motorists about the horse, Burston left the truck accident site.

Although there were two defendants in this personal injury trial, United Telephone Co. of the Northwest, which is a Sprint company, and the person who was supposed to be taking care of the horse before it ran off and got run over, the jury decided to hold only the phone company liable.

Whiplash
Whiplash can be extremely painful and debilitating and is one of the more common kinds of motor vehicle crash injuries. Signs of whiplash include pain, swelling, muscle spasms, difficulty moving, and pain radiating from the affected area to other parts of the body. Although whiplash is normally associated with the neck, other parts of the body may be affected.

It is important that you receive prompt and proper medical care for your whiplash. Some whiplash injuries are more serious than others and can affect the victim’s ability to live and enjoy a normal life or maintain a career or business.

Woman whose car hit dead horse gets $2.7 million from driver who killed it, SeattleTimes, July 7, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Whiplash, eMedicineHealth

United Telephone Co. of the Northwest, Federal Communications Commission

Continue reading " Jury Awards $2.7 Million Truck Accident Verdict to Woman Whose Car Struck Dead Horse " »

According to Illinois State Police, a multi-vehicle collision involving four tractor-trailers and three other vehicles has claimed the lives of two people and sent three others to the hospital. The Illinois tractor-trailer accident happened yesterday afternoon on Interstate 57, north of West Frankford.

Vehicles were stopped close to a construction zone when one of the tractor-trailers crashed into the line of traffic, resulting in multiple vehicles colliding. Two other commercial trucks were also unable to stop in time. Killed in the Illinois semi-truck accident were trucker Randy Reynolds, who allegedly failed to stop, and truck driver Carl James Jones Junior.

Also involved in the catastrophic Illinois semi-truck accident were two pickup trucks and a Jeep. One victim was flown to a hospital while two others were transported to a Benton hospital. A fire had broken out at the Illinois truck accident site, caused in part by fuel and the fact that one of the semi-trailers was carrying a cargo of vehicle batteries.

With so many parties involved in any kind of multi-vehicle collision, it can be a challenge to determine who should be held liable unless you have experienced legal help. Trucking companies often will fight to disprove liability, which can be especially confusing for everyone else involved—especially when there are multiple commercial firms determined to minimize any blame.

Two killed in fiery wreck on I-57, Pantagraph.com, July 16, 2010

2 truckers die in seven-vehicle crash on I-57 in Illinois, The Associated Press/The Trucker, July 16, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Truck Accidents Web Resources, Justia

Continue reading " Illinois Tractor-Trailer Accident Involving Seven Vehicles Kills Two Truckers " »

The only passenger of a Toyota Camry to survive a catastrophic Illinois traffic crash with a semi-tractor on Interstate 74 on July 8 has died. Mansfield resident Brittany Pritts was pronounced dead at an Urbana hospital on Tuesday. She had just turned 21 on the day of the Illinois truck accident.

Pritts was riding in the Camry driven by St. Joseph resident Mark Sjuts, when the Illinois truck crash happened. Sjuts, 52, and his son Chason Coty Sjuts, 23, were pronounced dead at the crash site. Pitts and Chason were dating.

Per Illinois State Police, the deadly Illinois semi-tractor accident happened when the Camry went off the road, drove through the median, and crashed with the semi-tractor trailer. The car ended up pushed back between the semi-truck and the median.

Police are trying to determine the cause of the truck accident. The Vermilion County Coroner’s Office says that the Camry may have hydroplaned because rain had left water on the road.

Chicago, Illinois Semi-Tractor Accidents
Chicago semi tractor trailer accidents can happen for many reasons. Truck driver error, driver negligence on the part of the person driving the other vehicle involved, defective auto parts, faulty maintenance, truck overload, poorly designed roads, road debris, and poor weather conditions, are just some reasons why truck accidents happened.

You may be able to pursue Chicago truck accident recovery from the parties responsible for causing your injuries or the wrongful death of your loved on. Truck accidents can lead to devastating injuries and ruined lives.

Third person dies from injuries in I-74 crash in Vermilion County, The News-Gazette, July 14, 2010

Fatal crash survivor dies, Commercial-News, July 14, 2010

Related Web Resources:
The Truck Safety Coalition

Truck Safety, Public Citizen

Continue reading " Third Person Dies from Illinois Semi-Tractor Crash on Interstate 74 " »

A $5 million wrongful death settlement has been reached between the mother of a woman who died in a 2006 truck crash and PG & E. Lisa Bernstein says she wanted to hold the utility company responsible for the truck accident death of her daughter Mary Bernstein, 20. Also killed in the fatal collision was Mary’s boyfriend Robert Conway.

The driver of the PG & E utility truck that collided with the vehicle that Bernstein and Conway were in was John Mayfield, who is diabetic. Mayfield did not test his blood sugar and blacked out while in the driver’s seat. He has pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter for his role in the truck collision. Prosecutors said the truck crash could have been avoided if only Mayfield had tested his blood sugar level before driving the PG & E truck. The truck driver says the insulin injector was faulty.

Although the state’s privacy act prevents an employer from looking at a worker’s health records, Lisa claimed that the utility company should have known that Mayfield was hospitalized on two occasions because he didn’t properly manage his diabetes and that off the job, he had been involved in two other car accidents.

Per the terms of the wrongful death agreement, PG & E is agreeing that the resolution should be recorded as a judgment, rather than a confidential settlement. This will allow any future victims to look up the case when negotiating their personal injury settlements.

It was just last week that Verizon Communications was ordered to pay the family of another truck accident victim $7 million because employee Mark William Selander, who is also a diabetic, suffered a hypoglycemic attack while driving on the morning of September 2, 2009. Jose Raul Reyes Vega died from injuries he sustained during the truck crash.

Chicago, Illinois Truck Accidents
Even if your Chicago truck crash occurred because the truck driver suffered a medical emergency, you may still have grounds for a Chicago truck accident lawsuit. Diabetic attacks, heart attacks, seizures, fainting spells, and sleep apnea have been known to be the cause of tragic truck collisions.

PG&E to pay bereaved mother $5 million in wrongful death lawsuit, MercuryNews, July 6, 2010

Verizon to pay $7M in wrong-way driving suit, The Daily Sound, July 2, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Driving Q&A for People with Diabetes, DLife

Truck Accidents

Chicago Heights trucker Tinauris C. Wise is facing a negligent homicide in the traffic accident death of Jose Aragon, 60 The Illinois tractor-trailer driver had parked his truck on a shoulder around a curve of Interstate 70, which forced Sharon L. Diaz to swerve her Ford Focus into another lane where it was rear-ended by another vehicle. According to authorities, a number of other vehicles were also forced into the left-hand lane because of the way Wise had parked his semi-truck.

The impact of the rear-end crash caused Diaz’s vehicle to rollover, throwing Aragon from the vehicle. Diaz and Aragon were both airlifted to the hospital.

Wise, 33, had placed reflective triangles on the interstate after his truck broke down. His truck was parked on the Interstate for nearly eight hours before the tragic traffic crash happened. He told police his son, niece, and nephew were in the truck cab and that he had put cones on the road to block the right-hand westbound lane because “trucks kept passing too close to him and that a motorist hit one of those (cones).” He says that he had waited all day for a tow truck to arrive. According to one State Patrol trooper, this was the first-time the officer had seen a lane closure in such a high-speed area, “let alone a downhill curve,” where motorists were given such a short time to react. Wise is also facing charges of obstructing a highway and reckless endangerment.

Chicago, Illinois Truck Accidents
Tractor-trailer drivers can be held responsible in both criminal and civil courts if their negligence, carelessness, or recklessness contributed to causing an Illinois 18-wheeler truck collision where personal injuries or wrongful deaths were involved. In Cook County, Will County, Lake County, and DuPage County, Illinois, contact our Chicago, Illinois truck accident law firm.

Cops say traffic cones he placed contributed to interstate wreck, GJSentinel, July 1, 2010

Trucker faces charges in fatal I-70 crash, Denver Post, June 30, 2010

Related Web Resource:
Improving Highway Safety, FMCSA

The month of July has just begun and already a number of people have been injured in semi-truck crashes. Our Chicago truck accident lawyers want to remind all motorists of the importance of driving safely. The summer months are a time of year when many people that are usually in school or at work are out on the roads headed to outings, parties, and on vacation. It is important that all motorists refrain from careless and negligent driving to prevent traffic crashes. Just yesterday, numerous injuries and at least one death occurred during large truck crashes.

State Highway Patrol say that at least 15 people were injured when a tractor-trailer failed to stop in a highway work zone and rear-ended one of nine vehicles that were stopped to cause a chain reaction, multi-vehicle crash. The truck then burst into flames at the side of the road. Semi-truck driver John S. Fahrni was transported to the hospital for treatment of non-incapacitating injuries.

In another tractor-trailer collision, 12 people were injured when a tour bus transporting a gospel group called The Bowling Family rear-ended the semi-truck. One of the bus passengers was ejected from the front passenger seat. He suffered serious injuries.

In yet another semi-truck crash, a 65-year-old grandmother was killed when the car she was driving collided with a tractor-trailer. Police say that the victim, Donna Gibbs, pulled out into the path of the truck as she attempted to make a left turn. The truck then hit a Jeep. The three children riding with Gibbs, two of them are age 7 and the other is age 6, sustained serious injuries. One of the girls has a brain bleed. The Jeep driver sustained minor injuries, and the trucker was not hurt.

Crash kills grandmother, injures 2 kids, WIVBTV, July 2, 2010

Truck bursts into flames during 10-car pile-up in southern Huron County work zone, Norwalk Reflector, June 25, 2010

People from Kentucky Hurt in North Carolina Tour Bus Accident, Lex18.com, July 2, 2010

Related Web Resource:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Continue reading " At Least 30 People Already Injured During Tractor-Trailer Crashes in July " »

Joshua David and Natalie Pierson, both 18, were injured on Monday night when the van they were riding was involved in a tractor-trailer collision. David sustained bruises, a cut to his head, and fractures to his left arm and leg. Pierson sustained a lip abrasion and bruised shoulder.

Police say that the tractor-trailer accident happened when the semi-truck, which had stopped on the shoulder of the highway, reentered the road without failing to yield to the approaching van. The van struck the truck’s left rear side before coming to also rest on the shoulder.

Tractor-trailer crashes injured and kill thousands every year, which is why it is so important that truckers drive carefully and abide by safety laws. It is usually the truck crash victims left with catastrophic injuries in the wake of an 18-wheeler truck accident. That said, motorists of other vehicles must also exercise the proper care when driving so that they don’t cause a truck collision.

David and Pierson are not the only ones to recently sustain injuries during a semi-truck crash. Yesterday morning, several people were injured when a driver’s education car and a semi-truck collided as the truck attempted to pass the car. The auto struck the tractor-trailer’s passenger side, spinning around, before the semi and trailer drove over the car’s trunk.

Truck driver John Fine and driver Zachary Denner, 16, two other students, ages 15 and 14, and the driver’s education teacher were taken to the hospital for treatment of what appear to be minor injuries. The authorities are investigating the tractor-trailer accident.

2 Ojai teens injured in crash with tractor-trailer rig, VC Star, June 29, 2010

Troopers investigate driver's ed car-semi crash, WCF Courier, July 1, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Preventing Trucking Accidents and Semi-Truck Accidents, Road Safe America

American Transportation Research Institute

Continue reading " Five Teenagers Injured in Two Recent Tractor-Trailer Accidents " »