High Speed Crash at Kingsville Naval Air Station Claims 6 Lives
Wednesday night after 11, reportedly a GMC Sierra truck was packed with 15 people, 10 inside the cab and 5 in the bed of the truck under a tarp, when the driver of the GMC Sierra attempted to crash the gate of the Kingsville Naval Air Station (NAS) in Texas. The Kingsville NAS security guards wisely deployed the Final Denial Barrier to prevent the unauthorized access of the truck that was fleeing law enforcement officers. But the driver apparently did not attempt to slow or stop and crashed at high speed into the Barrier.
6 people from the GMC Sierra died at the scene of the high-speed crash. Our Alvin, Texas car accident lawyers note that rescue crews used the Jaws of Life to extract other victims from the crashed pickup truck. People injured in the high-speed crash received air or ambulance transport to the hospital. The Texas Department of Public Safety and the U.S. Border Patrol are investigating the crash. (Source: Ofelia Hunter, Alice Echo-News Journal, 3/21/13)
The crash at the Kingsville NAS presents some interesting questions. Why would a “coyote” smuggling immigrants flee towards a government base when pursued by law enforcement officers? Why would the driver continue into a Final Denial Barrier at high speed to end in a fatal crash rather than attempting to slow or stop?
What can Victims do after a Fatal Crash?
Our Alvin, Texas car accident lawyers point out that when a person is injured or loses a loved one because of a negligent driver, they generally have legal recourse to hold that driver financially responsible for the high costs of the harm they’ve suffered through a car accident claim. Cases like the one at the Kingsville NAS could leave the injured and the grieving family members of the victims without much recourse.
You might have noticed that fatal crashes that claim the lives of immigrants packed into vehicles crossing the border appear more frequently in the news these days. Just this week, our Alvin, Texas car accident lawyers noticed a headline regarding the sentencing of the young driver who crashed a van smuggling immigrants. 9 people had perished in that crash.
Learn about the Challenges Victims Face in a Car Accident Claim When Trying to Hold Negligent Drivers Accountable for the Harm They’ve Suffered because of an Accident
Injured victims trying to hold a negligent driver financially accountable for their harm bear the full burden of proof in the case. They must adequately prove all of the essential elements of their car accident claim before they can receive even a penny in compensation. Click on the link to read an article by our Alvin, Texas car accident lawyers to learn what you must prove and what you need to do to win your car accident claim.
And if you have questions about your specific injury accident, contact us for a free, no obligation legal consultation. We could discuss the facts and circumstances of your crash and your potential eligibility for financial compensation for the needless harm you’ve suffered. Reach us anytime by filling out our online contact form, or dial us direct at 281-369-4363.
Know Your Risks of a Texas Rollover Accident in a Passenger Van
Our Galveston, TX personal injury lawyers have noticed an unusual number of serious passenger van crashes in the news lately. So we want to remind readers to be aware of your rollover risk in a passenger van.
Passenger vans have a greater tendency to end in a rollover during a crash than most other types of vehicles. The NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) was so concerned with your rollover risk in a passenger van that the agency even issued a special safety report on the topic: Evaluation of the Rollover Propensity of 15-Passenger Vans.
The NTSB report warns that fully loading a passenger van causes the center of gravity of the vehicle to move rearward and upward, increasing its tendency to trip into a rollover. It also increases the propensity for loss of driver control in the event of an emergency. Our Galveston, TX personal injury lawyers emphasize that the higher the speed at which a passenger van travels, and the heavier it’s loaded, the greater are its chances of a rollover during a crash.
Click on the link to read about a recent fatal passenger van rollover during a crash in Texas.
Some Safety Features that could Reduce Your Rollover Risk in a Passenger Van
- Antilock brakes that use speed sensors, valves, pumps, and controllers to stop the vehicle in a safe manner.
- Traction control systems that sense when a tire is slipping or losing traction and then automatically activates braking systems and slows engine speed.
- Lane departure systems that alert a driver when sensors detect that the van has left its driving lane.
- Electronic stability control (ESC) systems that use computer technology to monitor the vehicle’s speed and direction and to stabilize the vehicle.
Contact Us if You or a Loved One has been Hurt in a Texas Rollover Accident
Our Galveston, TX personal injury lawyers always provide you with a free and confidential initial legal consultation to discuss your accident injury and evaluate your potential eligibility for financial compensation. You have no obligation to hire an attorney. And we don’t charge you any attorney’s fees unless we WIN your case for you. So call today at 281-369-4363. Or just fill out our online contact form to receive your free legal consultation. Let our Galveston, TX personal injury lawyers’ more than 15 years of experience guide you to your road to financial recovery after a serious Texas rollover accident.
Update on Fatal Sanjel Oilfield Van Crash in West Texas
Our Pearland wrongful death attorneys at Denena Points, PC had passed along some news from The Odessa American (http://www.oaoa.com) regarding a fatal and tragic West Texas collision between a vehicle from Asbestos Removal Inc. and an oilfield van belonging to Sanjel Corp., a Canadian company. The Sanjel oilfield van had 9 men inside it at the time of the crash.
Authorities say that the crash occurred when one of the vehicles tried to turn in front of the other one. They have identified the two men killed in the tragic West Texas collision as Jose Ponce, 34, from Tomball, Texas and Michael Vonesh, 57, from Pearland, Texas. And the numbers of the injured from the Sanjel oilfield van crash, initially reported as four, have risen to seven. Four of those injured workers are said to be in critical condition. (Source: The Odessa American by way of The Associated Press, 3/27/13)
Our Pearland wrongful death attorneys express their condolences to the families and friends of the two workers whose lives were lost in the tragic West Texas collision. And we wish the injured men safe and rapid recoveries from their serious injuries.
Need the Police Accident Report after a Wreck has Injured You or a Loved One? Just Contact Us; We’ll get it for You
We realize that trying to obtain the police accident report you need for insurance purposes after a crash can be difficult and confusing, especially when your mind is on your family and on helping everyone cope after a tragic West Texas collision.
Our Pearland wrongful death attorneys have more than 15 years of experience helping the injured victims of all sorts of accidents. We know how to obtain the accident report you need quickly and easily with no hassle. So just contact us to request your FREE police accident report, and we’ll be happy to get it for you. Just call us at 281-369-4363 or fill out our online contact form with your request, and we’ll provide the police accident report to you free of charge.
Deadly Traffic Crashes on the Rise in West Texas and South Texas Oil Boom Regions
Our Pearland wrongful death attorneys continue to reiterate the rising dangers of deadly traffic crashes in the two big oil boom areas of Texas: the Permian Basin and the Eagle Ford Shale areas. Since oil and gas operations really began to take off again in 2008, the numbers of fatal crashes have increased more than 1,000% in some counties of these two regions.
In the Permian Basin in 2012 alone, 320 fatal accidents occurred and more than 4,000 crashes resulted with both fatal and serious injuries. Speeding and driver distraction are named as two of the primary causes of these tragic wrecks.
One of the greatest threats of fatal work-related injuries occurs when workers are out on the roads of the oil boom regions. We continue to urge workers, travelers, and residents alike to use extra caution when driving through the heavily trafficked oil boom regions. Stay alert and avoid driver fatigue, which has been named as another leading cause in the increasing numbers of tragic wrecks.
Missing Vial of Deadly Virus: Should Researchers Experiment with Death?
Death in a little glass bottle: a vial containing a sample of Guanarito, a deadly hemorrhagic fever from Venezuela, has mysteriously disappeared from the Galveston National Laboratory on the campus of the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB).
Officials are trying to reassure those of us who might be worried by saying they think the vial might have gotten stuck to something, maybe broken on the floor of the lab, and harmlessly disposed of in cleanup. But our Galveston injury attorneys point out that the simple fact is that they don’t know what happened to the vial. And the ongoing investigation at UTMB might not turn up anything concrete either.
What was in the Missing Vial of Deadly Virus at UTMB?
The missing vial of deadly virus apparently contained less than a fourth of a teaspoon of the hemorrhagic disease Guanarito. It’s a favorite disease target for government research because it’s one of those that could potentially be used by terrorists as a weapon. Now that’s really reassuring….
The vial was kept in a locked freezer at UTMB. Employees with access to the freezer have apparently been screened by security. And officials say, for what it’s worth, that there’s been no security breach…. But last Tuesday, an investigator discovered that one of the five vials of Guanarito had mysteriously gone missing. (Source: Erin Mulvaney, Houston Chronicle, 3/24/13)
Personally, I don’t find the statement that the vial might have simply stuck to something, fallen on the floor, broken, and gotten cleaned up (all without anyone noticing) very reassuring. Does anyone remember that story The Andromeda Strain? The Galveston injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC do not want to see a real-life sequel called The Guanarito Strain.
Should the Government Experiment with Deadly Diseases?
This incident might cause you to examine the question of whether the government and its researchers should be playing with these deadly diseases like Guanarito at all. Do you remember reading a few years back about the effort to revive the deadly strain of flu that wiped out millions during the World War I era? Do you wonder what the real end results of such efforts might be? What if someone loses samples of the experimental disease? Or accidentally drops a vial at the wrong place at the wrong time?
And what about the conscientious efforts to preserve samples of smallpox after vaccines had essentially wiped out the disease across the globe? I’m probably not alone in wanting to say good riddance to such diseases and to see the very last microbe extinguished.
Our Galveston injury attorneys mention that we all have quite enough problems in life without government researchers and those with access to their laboratories creating additional challenges for us. For one thing, supplies of medications and drug therapies have an alarming tendency to become compromised by contaminants and defects. This past week just saw two major recalls of drug lots from U.S. compounding pharmacies due to visible contaminants in the medications. Read more about the latest compounding pharmacy recall scare. Click on this article by our Galveston injury attorneys.
Does dangerous curve lead to potentially deadly Buffalo Bayou bath?
You might have already heard about the two tragic and deadly crashes that claimed the lives of drivers negotiating a curve near Cesar Chavez at Buffalo Bayou in east Houston. Just a couple of weeks ago in March, a driver failed to negotiate that curve and crashed at high speed through the fence by a business at Cesar Chavez and Buffalo Bayou. His car went airborne into the bayou and landed on its roof under around 25 feet of bayou water. After divers were able to locate the car, they pulled out the body of the deceased driver.
Then around midnight on Sunday, our Houston car accident attorneys note that a pickup truck made a fatal, airborne entry into Buffalo Bayou. The accident occurred in the same spot at Cesar Chavez by Avenue W. Officers responding to the accident scene had to call a dive team. It took them around 45 minutes to locate the drowned vehicle, and when they did, the driver had already tragically died.
The driver, who has not been identified, is described as a man in his late teens or early twenties from the local area. Officers say that he was traveling at high speed when his pickup truck broke through the chain link fence at the curve, went airborne, and landed in Buffalo Bayou. Officials have yet to determine whether alcohol might have been a factor in the tragic, watery wreck. (Source: KTRK abc13.com, 3/24/13)
Buffalo Bayou Curve Needs Additional Safety Measures
One thing is clear to our Houston car accident attorneys. This curve at Cesar Chavez and Buffalo Bayou needs additional safety measures to prevent fatal wrecks. Whether warning signs, lights, speed bumps, guard rails, or crash barrels might be the best solution is probably a question for TxDOT to determine. But clearly something is needed to prevent the fatal wrecks that regularly occur at this spot. These two in the last two weeks are not the only ones to have occurred.
Contact the Houston Car Accident Attorneys at Denena Points, PC when You need Help after a Loved One’s Wreck
We always offer you a free, no obligation initial legal consultation. And we don’t charge attorneys’ fees unless we win your case for you. Put our more than 15 years of experience and legal knowledge to work for your benefit. Call us direct at 281-369-4363 or reach us through our online contact form.
3 Critical Points about Your Financial Recovery after a Truck Collision
Truck collisions with passenger vehicles can be more violent and catastrophic than collisions with other passenger vehicles. The accidents between tractor-trailers and cars tend to produce more life threatening, disabling, and fatal injuries than the simple crashes between two passenger vehicles. Our Pearland personal injury lawyers point out that loaded tractor-trailers can weigh more than 80,000 pounds, leaving passenger vehicles and their occupants at a distinct disadvantage in the event of a crash. Momentum and speed factor in to give those 80,000 pounds even more deadly force than weight alone can account for.
The big insurance companies that cover truck accident policies have a vested interest in minimizing or denying your accident injury claim if they can. They have years of experience and highly paid insurance defense teams on their side, which you simply don’t have. This also leaves you at a distinct disadvantage after a truck collision.
The more serious injuries caused by truck collisions mean that victims face higher costs and heavier financial burdens. In an average vehicle collision, a critically injured victim faces expenses of approximately $1.1 million. When the injured victim is a passenger vehicle occupant hurt by a truck collision, those costs could be much higher. The expenses for ongoing medical care needed because of the crash could last for the rest of your life.
You need an Experienced Pearland Personal Injury Lawyer to Win the Full Financial Recovery You Deserve after a Catastrophic Truck Collision has injured you or a Loved One
Texas laws permit you to pursue the liable parties who have injured you to seek fair financial compensation for the needless harm they inflicted on you. But Texas law doesn’t require them to pay you even a single cent. You must prove every element of your injury compensation claim to win a fair financial recovery. Click here to read about the elements you must prove to win an injury compensation claim.
Contact the Board Certified Pearland Personal Injury Lawyers at Denena Points, PC for Help after a Catastrophic Truck Collision has Injured You or a Loved One
Our Pearland personal injury lawyers always provide you with a free and confidential initial legal consultation to discuss your case and evaluate your potential for a full financial recovery for your injuries. You have no obligation to hire an attorney. Just get the answers you need to move forward in life after a catastrophic accident.
Call us direct at 281-369-4363 or reach us through our online contact form. We don’t charge you any attorney’s fees unless we win your case for you. So call today.
FDA Recalls Mold Contaminated Drugs from Compounding Pharmacy Med Prep
Remember the deadly fungal meningitis outbreak last fall linked to a New England compounding pharmacy? 50 people have died from it so far, and more than 700 have been sickened by the fungal contamination.
Well, the FDA just announced that danger of another fungal contamination in drugs has been discovered. This one has been linked to a 20-year-old compounding pharmacy based in Tinton, NJ named Med Prep Consulting Inc.
Med Prep Consulting Inc. Linked to Latest Mold Contamination Recall
The contamination was found in bags of a magnesium sulfate intravenous solution at a Connecticut hospital. The Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys at Denena Points, PC emphasize that Med Prep so far says that no illnesses or injuries have been reported from the mold contamination. But administration of mold-contaminated intravenous products could lead to fatal infections in patients receiving the products. A recall has been issued for all Med Prep products distributed between February 18th and March 15th.
FDA Recalls ALL Med Prep Products due to Sterility Concerns at Manufacturing Facility
The Director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Dr. Janet Woodcock, stated that “a lack of sterility assurance” at Med Prep, along with caution, makes the FDA recall for all of Med Prep’s products necessary in order to protect patients. Lack of sterility assurance implies that Med Prep’s facility may be affected by the same widespread, visible mold and fungus contamination that was found throughout the New England Compounding Center facility last year, including in its autoclaves.
And our Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys point out that FDA records show that the agency previously warned Med Prep in 2001 and 2010 regarding sterility problems in certain repackaged drugs. In repackaging and compounding operations, the company uses ingredients from other large manufacturers. The FDA is working with the CDC and state authorities in Connecticut and New Jersey to get a handle on the scope of the new mold contamination outbreak.
Med Prep Temporarily Halting Production as a Precaution
Med Prep has entered into an Interim Voluntary Consent Order with the New Jersey State Board of Pharmacy to halt all production and distribution of its drugs during the investigation. Our Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys note that Med Prep makes anesthetics, antibiotics, cardiac medications, pain management drugs, and labor and delivery medications. The products come packaged in glass vials, plastic syringes, and infusion bags.
The recall and production stoppage at Med Prep comes just as the FDA has begun stepping up its inspections of drug compounding pharmacies in 12 states. Last year’s deadly fungal meningitis outbreak has prompted concerned lawmakers and others to call for improved oversight of drug compounding pharmacies. Clearly, that oversight, particularly regarding the maintenance of adequate sterility at facilities used to make sensitive medications, is needed.
Learn What You can do if a Contaminated Drug has Harmed You or Your Loved One
Click on this article by our Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys. And don’t hestiate to contact us if you need help after your drug injury. Reach us at 281-369-4363 or through our online contact form.
Hazards of Unsafe Lane Changes and What to do when they Occur in Texas
Unsafe lane changes often occur at high speeds as one driver tries to rush into a lane ahead of another. The reckless lane changes result in high-speed collisions that might lead to vehicle rollovers, crushed vehicles, fires, and catastrophic injuries or death.
Contact the Texas City Personal Injury Attorneys at Denena Points, PC if you need Help for Injuries caused by A Driver’s Unsafe Lane Change
We always provide an entirely FREE and confidential initial legal consultation to discuss the specifics of your accident and evaluate your potential eligibility for a full financial recovery. Just call us at 281-369-4363 or fill out our online contact form to schedule your free, no obligation consultation. Put our 15 years of experience helping injured clients successfully obtain fair financial recoveries to work for your benefit. Let our Texas City personal injury attorneys help you obtain the recovery you need to move forward with life after a serious accident injury.
Causes behind the Unsafe Lane Changes that Needlessly harm Innocent Victims
- A driver fails to signal an intended lane change,
- Driving while intoxicated,
- Driver fatigue,
- Failure to check rear-view and side mirrors before changing lanes,
- Blind spots or limited fields of vision,
- Driver distraction that causes a vehicle to veer or drift into another lane,
- Inclement weather conditions that cause a vehicle to slip or slide,
- Changing lanes too quickly to “beat” or cut off another vehicle,
- Drivers that recklessly change across several lanes at once,
- Drivers that try to pass in no-passing zones,
- Drivers that change lanes across solid yellow lines, and
- Drivers changing lanes in the middle of an intersection.
The collisions caused by unsafe land changes result most often in crushing rear-end wrecks or high-speed angle/sideswipe wrecks. The costs victims are left with because of extensive injuries and vehicle damage after a collision caused by a driver’s unsafe lane change can be burdensome. Don’t hesitate to contact the Texas City personal injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC if you need help after another driver’s error has needlessly injured you or your loved ones.
Floor Collapse in Sorrento Valley Business Injures 4 People
The floor collapse earlier this week in a Sorrento Valley business in California reveals some of the danger implicit in modern light construction methods. Apparently two men were moving boxes of materials in a storage area when the floor collapsed beneath them. When the floor gave way, the men fell about 12 feet into the lunchroom below.
The two men, along with two women in the lunchroom below, were injured in the fall. Ruptured structural materials and other debris also rained down in the floor collapse. Our structural collapse injury attorneys note that all four injured people received transport to a La Jolla hospital for their injuries. (Source: delmar-carmelvalley.patch.com, 3/12/13)
Modern Light Construction Buildings more Prone to Weakness and Collapse
Modern light construction, as opposed to older methods of heavier construction, relies on precise stress and engineering calculations that leave smaller safety margins. Our structural collapse injury attorneys point out that the older methods tended to provide larger margins of error in regard to possible weight loads, materials strengths, and stresses.
With modern light construction methods, floor joists might be narrower and more widely spaced. And many modern commercial buildings “suspend” the floors from structural connections, meaning that if a connection weakens and gives way, the floor can collapse. When a tall building is involved and the collapse occurs on a high floor, the collapsed floors might pancake onto others below causing a cascading collapse and multiple injuries or fatalities.
News accounts of the Sorrento Valley floor collapse did not indicate a specific cause for the injury accident. And it might be some time before investigators discover the precise cause.
Learn More about the Causes of Structural Collapses and Ways to prevent Them
At Denena Points, PC, we’ve been successfully handling structural collapse cases on behalf of injured clients for more than a decade. Our structural collapse injury attorneys have the hands-on, practical experience with structural collapse cases that most attorneys lack.
Our website is designed to share the knowledge we have gained regarding causes of structural collapses and how to prevent them with others who need to know. Read our FAQs, informational articles, and blogs to learn more.
And if you have questions about a specific accident injury or what you should do after a structural collapse harms you or a loved one, just give us a call at 281-369-4363 for a free and confidential legal consultation. Or reach our structural collapse injury attorneys anytime through our online contact form. We have the skill and in-depth knowledge you need to overcome the challenges of complex, highly technical structural collapse injury claims. Let us help you financially recover after your needless structural collapse injury.
6 Things to Know about Curbside Passenger Bus Safety in the U.S.
A tragic 2011 accident involving a curbside passenger bus traveling back and forth from New York City to the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut brought national attention to the problems of safety and driver fatigue in curbside motorcoach operations. The bus veered off I-95 in The Bronx and eventually crashed into the metal post of a highway sign. Part of the bus was sheered away. Our Galveston bus accident attorneys note that more than a dozen passengers died in the terrible crash.
Curbside passenger buses have been growing in popularity due to their convenience and inexpensive fares. Even regular coach bus services have some curbside operations these days. For the most part, buses are still a safer means of travel than passenger cars. But curbside bus operations present some special safety risks and challenges, such as the following:
- Curbside passenger buses have higher fatal accident rates and higher out of service rates because of driver violations such as driver fatigue, driver logbook violations, and driver health/fitness issues.
- Because curbside passenger buses can bypass fixed inspection stations and inspectors would have to stop and inspect during brief curbside wait periods, oversight and inspection of these buses and their drivers presents challenges. And curbside passenger buses therefore receive fewer needed inspections than regular coach bus services.
- Curbside bus operations and curbside passenger buses represent a method of doing business rather than a government transportation category. And because so many of the services change registrations frequently and are rarely known by their legal name, even tabulating data on such bus operations is difficult and many carriers are overlooked.
- Many curbside passenger buses, about 72%, rely on bus “brokers” to sell tickets. The brokers are often the only means to obtain any information regarding the buses, but brokers aren’t regulated under the U.S. DOT transportation laws. And our Galveston bus accident attorneys emphasize that bus brokers aren’t even required to disclose the name of a carrier, so passengers can’t easily obtain safety information regarding the carrier.
- All passenger bus services are required to report their annual mileage to the government. But an NTSB study found that 32% of curbside passenger buses never reported this. And another 32% had not updated their annual mileage figures since 2008.
- The bulk of curbside passenger buses operate in five states: Texas, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and California. (Source: U.S. NTSB’s Executive Report on Curbside Motor coach Safety, 2011)
Contact the Galveston bus accident attorneys if you or your loved ones suffer injury from a bus wreck
We offer a FREE and confidential initial legal consultation. You have no obligation to hire an attorney. Our 15 years of experience and legal knowledge guiding injured clients to successful financial compensation recoveries could help provide you with the information you need to make wise decisions regarding your family’s future after a tragic accident. And our Galveston bus accident attorneys don’t charge you attorney’s fees unless we win your case for you. So call us today at 281-369-4363 or reach us through our online contact form to schedule your free consultation.
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