Some Things You Might Want to Know About Truck Accidents in America
The Houston truck accident lawyers at Denena & Points note that around 35,000 people per year die in fatal traffic accidents in the United States.
· About 10% of these fatal traffic accidents involve a commercial vehicle.
· Some estimates say that up to 80% of accidents involving a commercial truck are caused by the other driver.
· These fatal traffic accidents cost Americans approximately $5,000 each second. That’s about $300,000 per minute.
Did you know that the United States has about 500,000 commercial trucking companies? The U.S. commercial trucking companies operate more than 2,000,000 commercial trucks. A majority of commercial trucks remain owner operated. If you break down a trucker’s annual pay, he makes on average about 30 cents per mile.
The math shows that commercial truck drivers have a huge financial incentive to avoid accidents. But our Houston truck accident lawyers see that truck accidents continue to happen at an alarming rate in the United States. Heavy commercial trucks have enormous momentum. If another driver tries to cut them off or beat them at a turn or a light, the truck can’t slow down or adjust course as quickly as a car. So a deadly crash might result. The cost of such accidents gets measured in lives and debilitating personal injuries as well as in money.
If you were injured in a Houston truck accident or you lost a loved one to a Houston truck accident, you might need experienced legal help to recover just financial compensation for your losses even though the wreck was someone else’s fault. Winning a claim in a truck accident case can be an uphill battle.
Aggressive insurance adjusters defending high dollar policies could give you the run around and attempt to lay the blame for the accident on you. You need a Houston truck accident lawyer with extensive knowledge and experience handling truck accident cases and aggressive insurance company tactics to help you win your claim.
Contact the aggressive Houston truck accident lawyers at Denena & Points for a free and entirely confidential consultation regarding your accident. We protect your rights and interests from start to finish. We could ensure that you get the full financial recovery that you deserve for your traumatic accident losses. Call today; we’re here to help.
The Cost of Poor Driving Decisions on Texas Roadways
The Montgomery County Police Reporter posted a fine story and some great photos of a costly tanker truck accident on State Highway 242 yesterday. Apparently the tanker truck driver tried to beat an oncoming driver as he turned his rig left into a subdivision. The tanker truck was hit by the oncoming vehicle, which smashed up the front of that car and ripped into the truck’s 200-gallon tank of diesel fuel.
Erica Hernandez of Conroe drove the Dodge Charger that broadsided the tanker truck when it failed to yield right of way. Ms. Hernandez received transport to the hospital in stable condition for her injuries from the tanker truck wreck. The driver of the truck, owned by Terra Renewal, said he “thought he could make it.”
To our Houston truck wreck lawyers, that seems a pretty lame excuse for the wreckage that followed the truck driver’s poor driving decision. That tanker truck driver was driving a tanker truck full of combustible diesel fuel for pity’s sake. With that dangerous cargo in tow, one would expect a professional truck driver to be more careful and responsible. You don’t pull a big, slow-moving rig full of combustible fuel out in front of an onrushing car on the highway, especially if that car has the right of way and probably wasn’t prepared for such a risky maneuver.
Houston truck wreck lawyers well know that mishandled and poorly driven, a truck itself is a dangerous weapon. With a tanker full of diesel fuel, it’s a dangerous incendiary weapon. There’s just no excuse for the kind of negligence that this tanker truck driver exhibited in failing to observe the legal right of way and trying to beat Ms. Hernandez’s oncoming Charger across the road.
We’re grateful that the damage and injuries from the wreck weren’t any worse. Our Houston truck wreck lawyers are also grateful for the professional and methodical work of first responders and HAZMAT personnel in containing the damage so quickly and methodically. We use SH 242 ourselves pretty frequently. The wreck could easily have been far more costly than it was. Let’s take a look at some of the more obvious costs of this wreck:
- Damage to the car (it looks like it might have been totaled).
- Damage to the truck and diesel tank.
- Loss of most of 200 gallons of expensive diesel fuel.
- Medical bills of Ms. Hernandez and possible lost wages while she recovers. We wish her a safe and uneventful recovery after the frightening accident.
- Costs of first responders and HAZMAT crews who worked the scene and cleaned up the dangerous mess.
- Costs in time as SH 242 remained shut down while the wreck’s damage was contained.
- The small fine for the “failure to yield right of way” citation that the negligent truck driver received.
- As Houston truck wreck lawyers, we shouldn’t fail to also mention the costs of a civil claim for damages, should an injured party choose to pursue such a claim. We all see wrecks every day in the news, from small fender benders, to crashes with odd twists, to the really big wrecks that tie up traffic for hours or days.
Road wrecks have become so commonplace; we probably don’t necessarily count the costs. But even the smallest accidents usually cost more than might meet the eye. All the better reason to take care, and try to avoid poor (and costly) driving decisions. Poor driving decisions can easily make you poor.
Negligence in Worker’s Death by Moving Crane at Barbours Cut Terminal
A man working at the Barbour’s Cut Terminal on the Houston Ship Channel just suffered a horrific, fatal accident when he got trapped beneath a crane that suddenly started moving. The heavy machine’s sudden motion apparently caught the worker up by surprise and severed his legs.
According to the news account of the Terminal worker’s death at the Houston ship channel, the vice president of the International Longshoreman’s Association said that “the crane is designed to move” and that the tragedy “appears to be an accident.” The news account of the tragedy is too brief to provide a full context to the tragedy.
Indeed, it’s not long enough for the Association vice president’s statement to make much sense. Most heavy equipment is “designed to move” in some way. But is it designed to move suddenly, without warning to fragile human workers who might be in its vicinity and who might suffer grievous injuries from even slight contact with the moving crane?
A crane is an enormously heavy and powerful device. It has to be to do its job. It would just make sense that such a machine, before lurching into sudden motion, would warn nearby people to stand clear. Or least warn them it was about to move in some way, then give them a chance to get out of the way. Or that the operator of the crane would take care not to catch up other innocent workers in his machine’s motion.
Was there a warning that should have been issued that wasn’t issued before this mammoth machine began its motion? Did the warning signal not work? Were there not any safety procedures in place providing that such a warning should be issued? Did the machine suddenly go into motion when it shouldn’t have due to a defect, operator error, or an easily accessible control switch left unguarded? Was the operator of the crane not paying attention when he initiated the crane’s motion?
Basically, what happened in this tragic fatality? The news report doesn’t really say. But it does appear that the worker trapped and killed by the crane’s motion was taken by surprise. And the news report implies that the worker was a regular worker or longshoreman. Such a worker would probably be familiar with working in the vicinity of the cranes along the Houston ship channel’s busy piers and terminals.
Even with so little hard information available, it seems that some degree of negligence on the part of an owner, crane operator, or other party must be involved for this accident to have affected the tragically killed worker in the way that it did. The worker’s devastated surviving family members could be eligible to obtain just compensation for the needless loss of their loved one.
Injured workers also have recourse through a Jones Act (Merchant Marine Act of 1920) tort case or through a worker’s compensation claim under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. We discuss the ways they could find some recompense through these Acts in further articles.
For help determining whether a Jones Act tort action of an LHWCA compensation claim governs your accident, click here.
Hazardous toys to look out for as you do holiday shopping at TX stores
This time of year sees various organizations issue lists of toys they consider dangerous to your children. Hazards presented by these toys could include:
- Strangulation.
- Electrocution.
- Laceration.
- Punctures.
- Choking.
- Lead and chemical toxins.
- Nearing reduction from noise levels.
- Other forms of injury or death.
The consumer group called WATCH (World Against Toys Causing Harm) issued their list of the 10 most dangerous toys they found in stores this year. Their list includes a wooden duck pull toy by HABA with a pull cord almost a yard long that could strangle a small child. It also includes a Power Rangers Samurai Mega Blade figure with long dagger-like attachments that could puncture or lacerate a child.
The Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) issued its 26th annual “Trouble in Toyland” list of potentially dangerous toys. Their list includes a Hello Kitty eyeshadow key chain that poses a risk from high levels of toxins and a Sesame Street Oscar doll that poses a choking risk. Since PIRG began issuing its Trouble in Toyland report, the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) has issued recalls on 150 of the toys listed in the PIRG reports.
Last year alone, the CPSC recalled more than 3.5 million toys due to the risks of choking they posed to children. It also recalled about 200,000 toys due to high levels of toxins.
It’s important to note that none of these products have yet been recalled. But by the time a product gets recalled, it may already be too late for your child who’s been injured by the dangerous product. It’s also important to know that many toys reach store shelves without being tested or evaluated for safety by the CPSC.
It’s not just small toys for children that pose hazards this holiday season. Toys intended for adults, such as ATVs and expensive sports cars, also pose risks. When you’re doing your holiday shopping, keep the safety of your family and friends foremost in your mind.
And if a dangerous or defective product has injured your child, give us a call for a free legal consultation about the accident. Our Texas Board Certified injury lawyers could walk you through your legal options and help you understand how you could make a full financial recovery for your costs from the accident. Your costs might include things like medical expenses and your child’s pain and suffering. Contact us today to learn more. If you have questions, we have answers.
Harris County pedestrian accident & the case for wrongful death suits
Saturday night in northeast Harris County saw a particularly horrific example of pedestrian-car accidents. First, a man driving a pickup truck accidentally struck Juan Mascotto, a man in his twenties, who was walking on the side of the Beaumont Highway near John Ralston. The driver of the pickup truck pulled over and waited for police to arrive. He told Harris County Sheriff’s deputies that he hadn’t seen the man walking in the highway.
Two wrecker trucks in the area formed a barrier around the accident scene as they waited for authorities to arrive. The two wrecker truck drivers and the owner of a nearby business tried to help the injured pedestrian.
While the business owner was on the phone to authorities, another pickup truck, driven by 62-year-old Lydia Mejia, attempted to bypass the barrier. Witnesses say that Lydia Mejia:
1. First swerved to evade the barrier,
2. Drove over the fallen Juan Mascotto,
3. Struck the business owner and one of the wrecker truck drivers, then
4. Attempted to speed away.
Fortunately, the other wrecker driver managed to initiate a pursuit and stop the fleeing Lydia Mejia within about a mile. Authorities have so far charged Lydia Mejia with failure to stop and render aid and an accident that caused injury or death. We laud the quick and heroic action of the wrecker driver in helping to catch such a callous would-be hit-and-run driver.
Juan Mascotto tragically died at the scene of the double pedestrian-vehicle accident. The wrecker driver injured by hit-and-run driver Lydia Mejia was treated for injuries and released at the scene. The business owner was transported to the hospital in critical condition, a very sad outcome for a Good Samaritan who was trying to help others.
News accounts of the fatal accident mention that it wasn’t clear whether alcohol was a factor in the wreck. Or whether Lydia Mejia just presents a case of an unusually callous and negligent driver. In either event, surviving close family members of Juan Mascotto could consider initiating a wrongful death case in their quest to see justice for the early demise of the young man.
No matter what criminal charges eventually result from this horrific sequence of events on the Beaumont Highway, a civil wrongful death lawsuit could help Juan Mascotto’s family members hold the negligent driver financially accountable for the actions that caused his death.
If you have lost a loved one to a fatal accident and you have questions about what you can do and whether you might have a valid wrongful death claim, contact our Harris County wrongful death lawyers for a free consultation. We could answer your questions and help you learn about your prospects for a successful financial recovery that would hold negligent parties accountable for the untimely demise of your loved one.
What a Parent Can Do When a Child is Injured in a Houston, TX Accident
As parents, we Houston injury lawyers at Denena & Points were a bit horrified when we read of the 4-year-old boy who was struck by a car as he crossed the street in front of his school. While that accident didn’t produce any major injuries or fatalities, and certainly wasn’t the most objectively horrifying accident we’ve encountered in the last few days, there’s just something about a car striking a small, innocent child that absolutely chills a parent down to the marrow.
And it isn’t as if the boy darted out into the street suddenly and the car’s driver simply couldn’t avoid him. On the contrary, according to the news reports the young boy was crossing the street in the company of his parent and a crossing guard. As parents, we would like to believe that such a scenario presents the ultimate in safety.
But that sadly was not the case here. The car – pedestrian accident occurred shortly before 9:00 a.m., well within the active school zone period, right in front of the MLK Early Childhood Center. Even if the 4-year-old boy forgets the details of the accident over time, it will probably live vividly in the parent’s memory forever.
The parent doesn’t have to wait passively for the authorities to deliver a citation or criminal charge to the negligent driver who caused the horrifying accident. The parent can initiate a civil suit to obtain fair compensation for the child’s injuries and for any pain suffering, and mental anguish resulting from the accident.
The parent’s lawsuit could deter the negligent driver from causing further accidents of this kind in the future. One parent standing up for their rights could save other parents and children from similar or even worse traumas.
The parent would do well to seek the counsel of an experienced Houston injury lawyer as soon as possible, while evidence of the accident is still available. Evidence begins to fade and degrade almost from the moment an accident occurs; so prompt action is needed to preserve it.
Witnesses’ memories of the incident become confused and unreliable. A knowledgeable Houston injury lawyer could take their statements while memories of the accident are still fresh and clear. No matter how heinous the accident or egregious the defendant’s negligence, in a civil suit the burden of proof rests entirely upon the injured party, the plaintiff. So parents need able counsel to help them win their injury claims for their children.
If you’re a parent whose child has suffered injuries from a driver’s negligence or distraction, contact us for a free consultation about the accident. The Board Certified Houston injury attorneys at Denena & Points could provide you with clear counsel on your available remedies against the negligent driver. We could walk you through the steps you need to take to obtain just compensation for your child. Your stand for justice, holding the driver financially accountable for the accident, could help deter that driver from ever injuring anyone’s child again. Contact us at your convenience. We’re here to help.
Deadly Wrong-Way Texas Drivers Don’t Care About Your Life or Safety
You’ve probably already hear about Brittany Dawn Burton, the drunken wrong-way driver whose wantonly reckless actions too the life of an innocent victim in North Texas. Do you think she gave a care to whether she took that person’s life or not? She didn’t even care about her own safety or the safety of her 6-moth old child. Police reportedly witnessed Brittany Dawn Burton traveling with her hands behind her head as she drove into heavy I-35 traffic the wrong way with her infant in the SUV.
The drivers of two vehicles took evasive action to try and avoid the wretch with her hands resting behind her head as she casually and drunkenly drove the wrong way on a busy interstate. The two vehicles of these other drivers collided while Brittany Burton went on with her reckless escapade.
The two drivers exited their vehicles, and one lost his life when another vehicle struck him on I-35. Brittany Burton and her child were unharmed by her drunken, reckless escapade. Brittany Burton was jailed and charged with intoxication manslaughter and child endangerment. (Update: Dallas news reports indicate that the prosecutor has decided to upgrade the charge to murder. Let’s hope it sticks.)
Another reckless, wrong-way driver lost his own life when he crashed driving the wrong way at high speed on Beltway 8 in Houston. The crash injured two innocent victims who had to be extracted from their wrecked vehicle and taken to the hospital for their injuries.
In both wrong-way driving incidents, sharp-eyed authorities spotted the heedless, callous drivers and quickly tried to stop them before they did any harm. But once a reckless or drunken driver is on the road in a vehicle that has become a deadly weapon in their hands, authorities can’t always prevent a tragedy.
Everyone needs to take a hand in discouraging heedless, hateful, or drunken behaviors before they injure or kill the innocent. Don’t let friends, family, or acquaintances drive drunk, drugged, or otherwise impaired. Don’t enable or encourage the underlying behaviors. Responsible action starts with you. The life you save might be your own. Your life and your safety just aren’t part of the callous driver’s equation. It’s up to you to change that math.
Brittany’s Burton’s daughter, whose own greatest liability may be her mother, narrowly escaped disaster on I-35. A man trying to evade Brittany Burton’s reckless, drunken driving was not as fortunate. His life was tragically lost to a callous, drunken loser.
GM Maintains Chevy Volt is Safe but Fire is Always a Risk with Lithium Batteries
General Motors must have received a huge number of queries from concerned Chevy Volt owners since the U.S. NHTSA announced its safety investigation a few days ago. The investigation stems from NHTSA concerns regarding dangers of injuries or fatalities from sudden explosion or fires in the Chevy Volt’s lithium-ion batteries.
The NHTSA’s concerns arose because a lithium-ion battery in a Chevy Volts it had tested for crash worthiness suddenly erupted into flame. The lithium-ion battery, damaged in the side impact crash test, erupted into flame some time after the actual crash test. It burst into flame while it was stored on a lot at the testing facility. The fire was so intense that it burned other nearby vehicles as well as the Chevy Volt itself. So the NHTSA isn’t just idly speculating about the fire hazard that could occur in Chevy Volt lithium-ion batteries. NHTSA knows of the danger firsthand.
Lithium-ion batteries always present a heightened risk of fire and explosion compared to other batteries and to many other fuel sources. The risk stems from:
- The much greater potential energy stored in the lithium-ion batteries,
- These batteries’ extreme sensitivity to overheating,
- Lithium’s high reactivity, and
- Lithium’s extremely violent reactions to both water and nitrogen.
- The high reactivity that makes lithium an excellent energy source also makes it a fire hazard. With lithium, you can’t have one without the other. That’s the tradeoff.
Lithium-ion battery designers go to great lengths to create safety vents and other features intended to reduce the dangers of fire and explosion from the batteries. But the slightest manufacturing or design defects or damage from a wreck can circumvent these safety measures and lead to fires and explosions. That’s what happened at the NHTSA testing storage facility. The lithium-ion battery got damaged in the side impact crash test, and when enough heat and pressure had built up in the damaged battery (no longer completely protected by safety vents and seals), the battery suddenly erupted violently into flame. The lithium-ion battery flame will burn at about 1,100 degrees.
GM staunchly maintains that the Chevy Volt is safe and presents no unusual risks. But in a highly unusual move, GM is offering free loaner vehicles to Chevy Volt owners concerned about the fire dangers presented by their vehicles. The highly unusual offer of free loaned cars coming so quickly after the U.S. NHTSA announcement of its investigation leads me to believe that GM must’ve been deluged by calls from Chevy Volt owners. GM says that it’s making the offer of free loaner vehicles to ensure that Chevy Volt owners won’t lose confidence in their electric cars. But I wonder if the offer might not have just the opposite effect.
Dangerous China-Made MK Lighters that Light Up Even When You Don’t
Disposable Lighters and Your Safety
The Chinese firm Zhuoye Lighter Company Ltd. Makes millions of cheap, disposable, and unsafe lighters that it distributes through a U.S. subsidiary. These defective lighters can leak butane, suddenly explode, and cause deadly fires. But it’s not violating any laws or regulatory standards by selling the dangerous lighters.
The U.S. CPSC (Consumer Products Safety Commission) declined in both 2001 and 2006 to mandate needed safety standards for disposable lighters. The only safety standard that a disposable lighter must meet is child-resistance. Otherwise, the CPSC restricts itself to issuing recalls on unsafe and defective lighters.
Other industrialized nations, including Canada and the European Union nations, do mandate safety standards. In this area, as in several other areas of safety, The U.S. lags behind other industrialized nations.
Some Interesting Statistics on Disposal Lighters
- About 1 BILLION of the devices are produced each year.
- Cheap imported disposable lighters account for more than 75% of the U.S. market.
- Chinese-made lighters make up almost 60% of the lighters imported into the U.S.
- CPSC studies found that fewer than 40% of disposable lighters conform to voluntary safety standards. (Manufacturers need not, and often do not, conform to voluntary standards.)
- The CPSC research found that China-made lighters had the lowest rate of conformance to voluntary safety standards at only about 30%.
- CPSC analysis of the problem found that unsafe disposable lighters caused more than 900 injuries each year and cost society $31 million dollars annually.
And the CPSC still declined to mandate safety standards for disposable lighters. One wonders how many people must be injured, how many people must die, and how much those injuries and fatalities must cost society before the CPSC takes action. And make no mistake: people do die from the dangerous, unsafe lighters. Learn what you can do if you’re injured by an unsafe lighter.
Death by Dangerous, Disposable Lighter
William B. Clemmer of Stephenville, TX dies after a Chinese-made MK disposable lighter exploded in his pocket and caused severe burns over half his body. Expert examination of the MK disposable lighter discovered that manufacturing and design defects could allow debris to collect on the globe seal. This would prevent the MK disposable light from completely sealing the lighter orifice. So even after a user has “closed” the lighter and put it away, gas could keep flowing and keep a miniscule flame burning. The flame might be too small for you to see it behind the windscreen, but it’s not too small to cause an explosion and deadly fire.
And manufacturing defects in the metering pad also could allow liquid butane to flow unevenly through the lighter orifice. So over time, the butane could pass through the orifice in liquid form rather than burning off as a gas. The liquid butane could then collect on your clothing. Body heat could cause the butane in the clothing to evaporate again in gas form. This expands its volume by about 60%.
The unextinguished tiny flame on the MK disposable light could then ignite the collected butane, exploding the lighter and catching you and your clothing on fire. This is what happened to William Clemmer. In addition, his MK disposable lighter contained an adjustable flame device that most major lighter manufacturers abandoned due to explosion hazards.
A Call to Action to the CPSC for Safety
William Clemmer’s brother Ricky said it best in an article on the Safety Research & Strategies site: “A cheap, disposable lighter killed my brother.” Ricky Clemmer calls on the CPSC to recall the dangerous MK disposable lighters and to set necessary minimum safety standards to save others from suffering such needless and completely preventable tragedies.
In Search of Safety in Houston, TX and Elsewhere
Sometimes I’d just like to relax, take it easy, and feel safe doing so. But you can’t travel anywhere and be safe. Buses aren’t safe. Cars aren’t safe. Planes and trains aren’t safe. Our roads aren’t safe. And according to news reports, cruise ships present an odd set of mysterious mass illnesses, shipboard disappearances, and dangerous incidents.
But staying at home isn’t safe either. Celebrated stay-at-home holidays give us some of the most dangerous days of the year. So what’s a safety-conscious person to do?
Despite the ever-present dangers all around us in this bustling, modern society,each person still holds the best prospects for ensuring their own safety.
- You can read articles from our library page on many safety concerns and precautions you can take at home and on the road.
- Follow vehicle recall notices and take action immediately if your vehicle has a defect.
- Never drive drunk, drowsy, or distracted. Never let friends and family do so either.
- Don’t deep fry turkeys at home. If you must have deep-fried turkey, order out.
- Follow recall notices on medical devices and products. When facing any medical concerns, always get an informed second and even third opinion.
- Get your home inspected for safety issues, particularly if you have wooden balconies, decks, or outside stairways.
- Bookmark this page. If an accident happens and you or your loved ones suffer injury, you’ll have someone to call who could help you recover.
At Denena & Points, we have long experience helping injured accident victims recover the financial compensation they need to move forward with life again. We’re Board Certified in Personal Injury law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, and we’ve dedicated our professional lives to helping innocent victims find justice after their undeserved and unexpected injuries.
Find your road to recovery. Contact us for a free consultation after you’ve suffered injury. We could help you find the answers and legal solutions you need.