Trucking Accident Lawyer Blog

Trucking accidents come in a variety of types, from single-vehicle and rollover wrecks to multi-vehicle and fatal collisions. No matter what the circumstances, being caught up in commercial truck crash while riding in a smaller passenger vehicle is hardly an enviable position in which to find oneself. We won’t even enter into a conversation of a pedestrian, bicyclist or motorcycle rider injured by a semi tractor-trailer or other large commercial vehicle.

Any driver who has been on the road for even a short time will understand the feeling of intimidation that a large tractor-trailer rig imparts to the occupants of smaller passenger cars, minivans and even large sport utility vehicles. Frankly, at 50,000 pounds of vehicle and cargo, the average 18-wheeler represents a huge amount of mass when compared to a relatively tiny sedan or economy car.

While freight forwarders and other delivery vehicles carry heavy loads, steel haulers and scrap trucks can be some of the heavier-laden vehicles on the interstates. If one is looking for one of the more deadly loads on our roadways, look no further than the ubiquitous tanker truck. While these are also quite heavy, big rigs pulling trailer filled with caustic chemicals or flammable liquids chemicals have the added danger of losing their contents in the event of a bad traffic accident.

Continue reading "Cecil County, MD, Trucking Accident News: Semi Tanker Truck Rolls Over, Spills 3000+ Gallons of Fuel" »

To some people there is nothing quite so scary as the thought of being burned alive. While most people likely consider a house fire as one of the most frightening events, an automobile fire can be extremely terrifying and many times more dangerous because of the smaller space and the increased chances of the occupants being trapped in the vehicle following a serious traffic crash.

As a Maryland trucking accident attorney, I wouldn’t be the least surprised to learn that a healthy number of drivers in Baltimore, Frederick and Rockville, MD, do their best to steer clear of commercial tanker trucks carrying gasoline, fuel oil, propane as well as other flammable and potentially explosive substances. Although car fires are relatively few and far between when compared to the total number of highway collisions every year, those odds can be increased whenever a tank truck carrying flammable cargo is involved.

According to a news report a while back, a propane tanker crashed and overturned along a stretch of Interstate 70 in Mount Airy, MD. The accident, which took place on a Sunday morning a little east of Md 27, resulted in the roadway being closed off for nearly six hours as emergency responders and hazmat crews worked to clean up the crash site. Fortunately, no one was hurt in this particular instance, which is amazing in itself.

Based on police reports, the truck was hauling more than 8,000 gallons of liquid propane gas (LPG) when its driver apparently lost control of the vehicle. Reports indicate that 42-year-old James Hooper was operating the tanker as it traveled east on I-70 near exit 68 when the vehicle’s back wheels reportedly veered onto the gassy median adjacent to the roadway. This sudden change caused Hooper to loose control and the truck turned onto its side.

During the crash, the tanker slid on its side for approximately 300 feet before coming to rest against the guard rail in the center median. According to police, no liquid propane leaked from the tanker and no other vehicles were involved. Authorities did say that Hooper and his passenger, 55-year-old Glenn Novack, were both injured during the accident. The two men were taken to separate hospitals, where they were each treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

No specific cause, such as defective equipment or driver error, was given at the time of the news report, however an investigation by the state police was ongoing with assistance from the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division and the Maryland Department of the Environment. Other agencies responding to the scene that day were the Mount Airy volunteer fire company, Lisbon fire company, Howard County Police Department, Carroll County Sheriff's Office and the Maryland State Police.

POLICE: Propane tanker overturns on I-70, CarrollCountyTimes.com, January 17, 2011

When it comes to being injured due to a traffic accident or other motor vehicle collision, it’s not unusual for people to assume that public transportation, such as commuter trains and city buses, is safe and that the operators of those conveyances are trained professionals dedicated to performing their jobs with the safety and well being of their passengers foremost in the minds. Similarly, as parents, we expect that our children are going to be safe once they step aboard a school bus every morning.

As passengers on public transport, we all must put our faith in the people running that bus line, railroad or airline. Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world and traffic accidents do occur -- and more than we would like. As Maryland personal injury lawyers and commercial trucking, automobile and motorcycle accident attorneys, we understand the expectation of safety that every parent must feel regarding school bus safety.

A story that caught our eye a little while ago points up how close to tragedy many people come from time to time. According to news articles, a school bus driver was charged for her part in a traffic accident on a stretch of Rte 1. Based on state police reports, 53-year-old Brenda Gosch was driving a 2007 Blue Bird school bus on a Friday morning around 8:30 when she attempted to turn onto a side road.

Apparently due to driver error, the bus turned in front of an oncoming tractor-trailer rig driven by a 45-year-old Maryland trucker, Paul Clauson. The semi tanker driver could not avoid hitting the school bus, which thankfully was unoccupied except for the driver. The tanker was reportedly half-full of fuel at the time of the collision, however no spillage occurred and there was no fire.

Emergency responders arriving on the scene likely tended to the two drivers. Clauson’s injuries were reportedly minor and he was transported to Milford Memorial Hospital for back strain. Gosch, who was uninjured, was charged by police for failing to yield the right of way to the Clauson’s 2004 Kenworth.

State police investigators were still looking into the accident at the time of the news report and there was no mention given as to any other causes for the accident. Although driver error was cited as the cause in this instance, defective equipment is always a possibility in bus or truck crashes depending on the particular circumstances surrounding the accident.

UPDATE: School bus driver charged in crash, WGMD.com, January 14, 2011

Maryland authorities in Washington County, MD, as well as those in several other states, have lodged charges against the out-of-state truck driver who led police on a multi-state chase. While no injuries were reported in this instance, any time a commercial truck is used in a manner not intended for safe highway travel, innocent motorists can be put at risk. If a chase ensues when innocent drivers are around, people can and do get hurt as a result.

As Baltimore injury lawyers serving the residents of Maryland and Washington, D.C., we have heard countless stories of injury accidents involving passenger cars and 18-wheelers or motorcycles and commercial deliver trucks. While federal regulations such as 49 CFR Part 395, which puts limits on when and how long commercial truckers can operate their vehicles, endeavor to control the actions of law-abiding drivers, those who feel they are outside the law can be the cause of severe traffic accidents.

When a commercial truck driver, operating either a large box truck or the heavier and more massive 18-wheeler, acts in a negligent manner, lives can be put at risk. Traffic accidents caused by an errant semi tractor-trailer can result in multiple vehicle collisions, during which head, neck and internal injuries can result.

The physical injuries that these kinds of highway wrecks can cause are just the tip of the iceberg -- for many families, the treatment immediately after the accident as well as the surgeries and physical therapy weeks and months later can cause a family financial trouble almost from the get go. In cases of wrongful death, where a negligent party caused an accident that took a loved one’s life, lawsuits are sometimes filed for pain and suffering that the victim experienced before his or her own death.

Regardless of the cause, a trucking-related traffic collision can many times be more serious than a similar passenger car collision. Luckily for everyone, that interstate police chase involving a Mississippi truck driver ended without and serious injuries. According to news reports, the trucker involved in that chase now faces multiple charges, some from the Maryland.

The chase ended after passing through West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The driver, 42-year-old Thomas L. McNeel was being held on $250,000 bond following his arrest. Based on reports, he was charged with attempting to elude police officers, intent to possess a contraband substance, driving under the influence of a controlled substance, reckless endangerment, reckless and careless driving, plus numerous other traffic offenses, according to court records.

Here in Maryland, state police charged McNeel with four counts each of first- and second-degree assault; two counts of failure to stop following a traffic accident; eluding police officers, careless and negligent driving, according to the Washington County District Commissioners Office.

Truck driver involved in chase facing numerous charges in three states, Herald-Mail.com, December 21, 2010

Commercial truck accidents can cause some of the most serious injuries to surrounding passenger vehicles, pedestrians and other innocent bystanders. Tanker trucks in particular are some of the most dangerous vehicles on the roads these days. Many of these vehicles carry flammable cargo, such as gasoline, fuel oil, compressed natural gas and propane, not to mention dangerous chemicals.

Serving the residents of Baltimore and surrounding Maryland communities, my personal injury law office knows how quickly an accident involving a semi tractor-trailer rig can cause serious injuries or even death to other motorists. Recently, the Pennington Avenue Bridge was closed down due to a bad collision between a gasoline tanker and a construction vehicle.

According to reports, the force of the accident nearly pushed the tanker off the bridge entirely. Based on police reports, the fuel tanker was en route to pick up 9,000 gallons of gasoline when it was struck by the other vehicle. The accident caused the tanker to became wedged over a concrete barrier wall. Although the tanker was reportedly empty at the time of the crash, the entire area was sprayed with foam as a precaution against fire.

The construction vehicle, according to reports, crossed over into the oncoming lane and hit the tanker trailer at its midsection. The truck was apparently destroyed in the vehicle crash, which left the tanker hanging partially off the bridge. Witnesses reported that the driver of the construction vehicle avoided serious injury. Based on news reports, the driver received only a bloody nose and a sore arm, according to a Baltimore Department of Public Works employee.

The accident caused sufficient damage to the bridge that engineers were concerned about the integrity of the entire structure, which comprises not one but two drawbridge sections. A four-man engineering and inspection team did a complete check of the structure and finally approved it for traffic about two hours later.

Eastern Bridge Reopened After Tanker Accident Reporting, WJZ.com, April 16, 2010

Trucking accidents can result in injury to the occupants of passenger cars, as well as pedestrians and bystanders. In addition to drivers of smaller vehicles being hurt in a semi-truck or commercial vehicle accident, fatalities are not uncommon on highways, city streets and rural roads throughout Maryland. As Baltimore tractor-trailer accident lawyers, my staff has helped dozens of people who have become victims of another person’s negligence.

Occasionally, the victim of a trucking crash can be the driver of the over-the-road hauler itself. Fatal and non-life-threatening injury accidents can be the cause of driver error, as well as poorly maintained roadways, or even defective vehicle equipment. Whatever the cause, the costs are high for the victims due to the sometimes extensive medical care, lost wages or unmet financial obligations due to injury.

Not long ago, a Maryland trucker died in a horrendous semi crash and ensuing fire on the New Jersey Turnpike. The victim, 25-year-old Jovon Holmes, tragically burned to death after his truck hit a pickup, then struck a bridge abutment and burst into flames. According to news reports, witnesses at the scene said the fire was so bad that emergency personnel had a very difficult time locating and the identifying the man.

The accident occurred just after 11pm, according to police reports, near Exit 6 of the turnpike. Possibly due to a slick combination of snow and ice, a northbound Chevy Avalanche pickup truck spun out of control and impacted the Jersey barrier. The vehicle came to rest in the northbound lanes, according to police.

The deceased man, who was driving his truck toward the initial accident, reportedly could not stop in time and as a result ran into the disabled Chevy. The larger tanker truck crashed into the Avalanche and pushed it for a short distance; the truck driver then veered off and hit one of the concrete pillars supporting the overpass. As a result, the truck caught fire with the driver trapped inside.

Witnesses reported seeing a massive amount of flames, which engulfed the entire vehicle from front to back. Police indicated that the hapless trucker had no chance to escape the blaze. It was unknown at the time of the report if the truck was hauling gasoline or another flammable load.

The occupants of the Avalanche, a 17-year-old female driver and 16 year-old male passenger, were both transported to the hospital where they were treated for minor injuries and subsequently released, according to police.

Trucker burned to death on TPK, Trentonian.com, February 1, 2010

A trucking-related wreck can be a frightening event, especially for the occupants of smaller vehicles caught up in the crash. A semi tractor-trailer hauling heavy cargo can do significant damage to smaller and lighter passenger vehicles. Even sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks are no match against a fully-loaded big rig.

As a Maryland injury lawyer and trucking accident attorney, I know that the size of these vehicles and the cargo they carry can cause serious harm to the drivers and passengers of multiple vehicles. One of the most dangerous types of truck-related crashes involve tankers carrying flammable liquids such as heating oil, diesel fuel, kerosene or gasoline.

A tanker crash can release thousands of gallons of combustible liquids, which can engulf and burn out of control for hours. Any motorist caught up in a tanker truck crash must have luck on his side to make it through. This kind of traffic accident occurred not long ago on Montross Road above Interstate 270 in Montgomery County, MD.

According to news articles, a fuel tanker carrying 8,900 gallons of gasoline overturned shortly before 5am near I-270 ramp in Rockville setting off a fire that blocked several key arteries in the area just before the morning rush hour. Based on reports, the tanker driver was charged with negligent driving in the accident.

Michael A. Gongola, 45, of Frederick, MD, reportedly said that his rig began to drift to the left side of the highway “for unknown reasons," according to the Montgomery County police. Police say that Gongola tried to correct the drifting condition, which then caused the tanker to overturn on Montrose Road, spilling its contents onto the roadway and then catching fire.

Debris from the truck struck a second vehicle, but fortunately the occupant of the car and the truck driver were not injured. However, had this accident happened at the peak of the rush hour, there could have been some serious injuries and potentially a fatality from the ensuing truck fire.

Overturned fuel tanker fire closes Montrose Road, WashingtonPost.com, January 15, 2010

Repairs underway on stretch of Montrose Road damaged in fire, WashingtonPost.com, January 14, 2010