Death of Woman Hit by Log from Truck in Altavista, VA Highlights Trucking Dangers

A recent fatal accident in a rural part of Virginia has illustrated how there are many dangers associated with big trucks.

This accident occurred on Route 29 at the Gladys Road intersection early one morning. State police told the local media that a 44-year-old woman died when a log came off a truck in front of her and crashed through her windshield.

Tragically, the woman from Altavista in Virginia died of blunt force trauma. A five-year-old boy in the back of the car was not injured. Police said there were no other cars at the accident scene at the time, and it was very likely that the log fell from a truck without the driver even knowing. This was a tragic crash and further evidence of the dangers of trucks on rural roads.

In the month of June we will be writing a series of articles about trucking. The trucking industry is one of the most competitive in America. Fierce competition and the imperative to make deadlines pushes many trucking companies to place undue pressure on their workers, resulting in fatigued drivers. Although federal regulations are intended to safeguard other road users, truckers and companies routinely flout them. Their trucks’ massive size and weight can lead to devastating crashes.

In the aftermath of trucking accidents, trucking companies can be held responsible for placing their drivers on impossible schedules. The companies that maintain and service trucks may also be liable for allowing unsafe trucks out on the highway when they knew dangers existed. Whether you are involved in an accident with a relatively small delivery truck, a commercial truck, an 18-wheeler or any other truck carrying containers, the occupants of a much smaller passenger car can be severely injured or even killed.

According to the US Department of Transportation, 3,602 people in total died in large truck crashes in 2013. Sixteen percent of these deaths were the occupants of trucks, 67 percent were occupants of cars and other passenger vehicles, and 15 percent were pedestrians, bicyclists or motorcyclists.

While the highways have become safer for many road users this is not the case with truckers in recent years. The number of people who lost their lives in large truck crashes was 14 percent higher in 2013 than in 2009, when it was lower than at any year since the collection of fatal crash data began in 1975. The number of truck occupants who died in accidents was 31 percent higher than in 2009. However, the number of deaths from truck accidents has declined since it reached a peak in 1979.

See our Virginia trucking accident lawyers’ frequently asked questions. The attorneys at Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers have been helping people who have been injured in trucking accidents and the relatives of those who have been killed for more than 25 years. We are the authors of The Best Book About Virginia Trucking Accidents. Call us at 757.455.0077 for a free consultation.