North Carolina Railroad Injury Attorney Report : Truck Driver is Injured in Crossing Accident with Norfolk Southern Train in Mooresville, NC

Railroad crossings are the scenes of many accidents between trains and cars or trucks and many more close misses.

The dangers were highlighted in a recent dramatic crash in Mooresville, North Carolina (NC) in which a tractor trailer driver was injured when his truck was hit by a train.

A fiery wreck occurred on the railroad crossing just before 2 p.m. on August 14, 2012 at a railroad crossing on Penske Way, close to the intersection with Mazeppa Road, the Charlotte Observer reported.

A Norfolk Southern spokesperson told WCNC-TV the 18-wheeler “failed to stop at the crossing, and the northbound Norfolk Southern train hit the truck’s fuel tank,” the Observer reported.

As an experienced North Carolina railroad accident injury lawyer, I see a number of crashes on railroad crossings. Although we may think these kinds of accidents are uncommon, trains hit motorists frequently on crossings in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. Fortunately, in this case, the truck driver’s injuries do not appear to have been life threatening.

The dangers of railroad crossings were dramatically illustrated in 2011 when an Amtrak train hit a truck on a railroad crossing near Reno, Nevada, killing six people.

In the Nevada accident, the truck driver was at fault. The trucking company had been cited repeatedly by state authorities for its record of crashes and unsafe driving.

But railroads can also be held liable for crashes at crossings. Areas of potential liability include malfunctioning equipment, poor track maintenance and a failure to give adequate warning of an oncoming train, such as a conductor’s failure to blow a horn on approach.

The relevant standards are set out in a publication called the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) while the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA), has also published standards.

If you have been hurt in an accident at a railroad crossing you should consult an experienced Virginia or North Carolina railroad crossing accident injury lawyer.