Truck accidents are often some of the most devastating accidents on the road. In addition to massive personal injuries that often accompany accidents. In addition truck, accidents often result in extensive property damage. While any accident involving a commercial vehicle is devastating, some of the most disastrous are those involving a truck that is hauling lumber.
Fatal Logging Truck Accidents
Recently, there was a logging truck accident that highlights the danger of an accident involving a lumber hauling truck. In early July of 2016, a log truck and a pickup truck were involved in an accident that resulted in both drivers losing their lives. The accident was noted on U.S Highway 59 on Rusk County Road in Nacogdoches Texas, just north of Garrison Texas. This accident happened when the pickup driver was hit from behind by a large truck carrying lumber. Reports from state police note that the truck driver did not appear to have applied their brakes at all, and preliminarily the accident determined to be the result of the truck driver not paying attention.
As the pickup truck driver was turning his vehicle onto a local county road, the truck driver behind him struck his vehicle causing fatal injuries to the driver of the pickup and also caused the truck to continue off the road and down into an embankment.
These tragic accidents highlight that not only do these accidents happen but that these accidents often leave us asking why do these accidents happen.
Another accident involving a truck hauling lumber was also reported in late July of this year. As a driver was merging onto 25 East, the Morristown police department indicated that the driver was struck by timber that was not properly secured on the truck. While the driver, in this case, did not suffer any life-threatening injuries, their car was severely damaged.
Leading Causes of Log Truck Accidents
Logs and timber often must be harvested and cut from remote regions and then brought to processing facilities. Many of these timber-hauling vehicles require drivers to navigate difficult roads made of gravel and dirt, and then subsequently drive on state and local highways. This means that drivers who are hauling logs and timber must be exceptionally vigilant when they are on the road. Despite efforts to modernize the industry, several factors have bee continuously noted as a cause of accidents.
- Mechanical failure – commercial vehicles are vastly more complex than your standard car, pickup truck, or SUV. While a mechanical failure in any vehicle can lead to an accident, there has been a particular problem with large vehicles hauling lumber experiencing preventable mechanical failures that subsequently result in accidents.
- Driver error – one of the leading causes of any accident is the driver who is behind the wheel. Truck drivers are under an incredible amount of stress and often must meet strict deadlines. Drivers who make improper turns, follow other vehicles too close, or who make improper lane changes can cause accidents.
- Poor road conditions – Trucks that are hauling lumber are extremely heavy. In addition, because their cargo is often exposed on three sides, this means that if a driver hits a pothole or a rough patch on the road, it can cause the logs and timber to shift and even fall from their vehicle. In addition, when road conditions are not ideal, such as when it is raining, snowing, or when there is fog, drivers can require longer distances to come to a complete stop.
- Tailgating – everyone knows the dangers of driving too close to the driver in front of you, but trucks that are hauling any material, and particularly trucks that are hauling lumber products need to be aware of their surroundings and maintain a safe distance between themselves and the vehicle in front of them.
Trucks hauling lumber and other wood products have gained a reputation for being the source of fatal and catastrophic injuries.
Contact Our Truck Crash Attorneys Today
So contact our truck accident lawyers at (215) 709-6940 or contact us online today to see how we can make our experience work for you. You only pay if there’s a financial recovery.
Related Posts
