Motor Vehicle Accidents

Published on: October 29, 2013

California Jury Awards Thirteen-Year-Old Girl $150 Million in Wrongful Death Suit

A Los Angeles jury awarded a thirteen-year-old girl $150 million in damages on Friday based on an accident that occurred on a Southern California freeway almost four years ago. The girl watched her family members burn to death in their vehicle after they hit and got stuck under a big rig truck on the shoulder of the highway. The jury found the trucking company and one of its drivers liable in the accident and ordered them to pay the $150 million judgment. The jury deliberated for three days before announcing that Rudolph Ortiz, the driver of the truck, was negligent for parking his truck on the side of the freeway while it was dark outside without leaving on any lights or reflectors to show his presence.

Attorney Brian Brandt, the thirteen-year-old girl’s attorney, said the scope of the verdict is hard for his client to comprehend. Kylie Asam was nine at the time of the tragic accident. Her and her eleven-year-old brother, Blaine, freed themselves from the family’s crushed SUV after it got stuck under Ortiz’s truck on the side of Interstate 210. Kylie and Blaine were the only two family members to escape the vehicle. They were forced to watch their parents and older brother die in a fiery inferno.

The jury’s verdict also included $8.75 million to go to Blaine, who committed suicide before the trial began. Kylie will receive the money as her brother’s successor-in-interest, but, as Brandt explained, all of the money will be placed in a trust until Kylie turns eighteen.

LA jury awards $150M in wrongful death case, www.miamiherald.com October 29, 2013

Published on: October 22, 2013

San Francisco Area Train Accident Takes the Lives of Two Workers

by Friedland | Carmona

Two workers who were inspecting train tracks Saturday afternoon were hit and killed by a commuter train returning from routine maintenance work in the San Francisco Bay area. The tragedy came amid a strike that has closed the Bay Area Rapid Transit system to riders over the past several days. BART’s Assistant General Manager Paul Oversier stated at a news conference that, at the time of the accident, the four-car train was being operated in automatic mode under computer control. Oversier stated that there were numerous people aboard the train, but he would not reveal who had been operating the train.

The accident occurred just before 2 p.m. Saturday in the East Bay city of Walnut Creek. One contractor and one system employee were killed in the crash. The names and ages of the individuals killed were not immediately released. BART officials said that the train was at a yard where workers were cleaning off graffiti. According to BART, the two workers who died in the accident were performing track inspections. Both individuals had extensive experience in this line of work.

Officials from the unions representing BART’s train operators and other system workers warned of the danger inherent in allowing managers to operate trains, which was BART’s plan if a strike occurred. The unions have been out on strike since Friday. BART officials refused to answer questions concerning the union’s warnings about train safety during a strike. The National Transportation Safety Board announced late Saturday that it will take over investigations surrounding the accident.

Train kills 2 track workers amid SF Bay strike, www.palmbeachpost.com October 20, 2013

Published on: October 18, 2013

Thirty-Two People Sustain Injuries in Broward County Bus and Tow Truck Crash

by Friedland | Carmona

A collision between a Broward County bus and a tow truck on Thursday sent thirty-two people to the hospital with injuries. The tow truck was towing a car at the time of the accident. According to Pompano Beach Fire Rescue, the accident occurred at 1400 W. Sample Road around 4:00 p.m.

Almost all of those involved in the accident sustained minor injuries; however, one individual was transported to the hospital with moderately serious injuries. Both the bus driver and the tow truck driver are among those injured. According to authorities, a City of Pompano Beach Parks and Recreation bus drove nine people to Holy Cross Hospital. The twenty-three other injured individuals were transported to Broward Health North, Northwest Medical Center, or Broward Health Imperial Point.

32 people injured after tow truck, Broward County bus crash, www.miamiherald.com October 17, 2013

Published on: October 11, 2013

Truck and Train Collide in West Virginia, Train Overturns, Multiple Injuries Sustained

by Friedland | Carmona

Multiple individuals suffered injuries in West Virginia today when a truck collided with a train carrying passengers on a scenic fall foliage tour. The accident occurred around 1:30 p.m. today near Cheat Bridge along U.S. Route 250. Cheat Bridge is located approximately one-hundred-sixty miles east of Charleston, West Virginia. According to Pocahontas County emergency services director Shawn Dunbrack, the collision caused two passenger cars on the Durbin & Greenbrier Railroad train to overturn.

Authorities are investigating the crash and trying to determine the extent of the injuries that were sustained. Dunbrack estimated that at least ten people may have been hurt as a result of the collision. State police responded to the scene of the accident. Phone calls placed to the railroad owner John Smith and a state police spokesman were not immediately returned. The scenic fall foliage tour, known as the Cheat Mountain Salamander, runs in October from Tuesdays through Saturdays on a six and a half hour trip.

Truck, train collide in W.Va.; several injured, www.miamiherald.com October 11, 2013

Published on: October 3, 2013

Church Bus Crash in Northeastern Tennessee Claims Eight Lives

by Friedland | Carmona

Eight people are dead after a fiery bus crash in northeastern Tennessee Wednesday. Fourteen other individuals sustained injuries, including two who were in critical condition. According to authorities, the bus was taking a church group home to North Carolina when it blew a tire, slid across a highway median, and crashed into an SUV and a tractor-trailer. It was about 2 p.m. when the bus crossed the median and the cable barriers that divide the highway. When the bus slammed into the tractor-trailer, the tractor-trailer burst into flames.

The bus was traveling back to Front Street Baptist Church in Statesville, NC, which is about one-hundred-forty miles east of where the crash occurred. The group on the bus was a group of seniors known as “Young at Heart” who had attended the Fall Jubilee in Gatlinburg, Tennessee prior to the crash. A memorial service was scheduled for Wednesday night at Front Street Baptist Church.

Hours after the crash, smoke clouds still rose from the tractor-trailer. The bus continued to lie on its side, covering two lanes and part of the median. The SUV was still upright about fifty yards from the tractor-trailer. The back half of the SUV had been completely torn off. Emergency responders and others near the scene of the crash rushed to remove people from the bus. The crash caused all lanes of the highway to shut down in both directions. Tennessee Highway Patrol spokesman Sgt. Bill Miller stated at an evening news conference that it was still unclear what caused the bus tire to blowout.

Authorities: 8 killed in church bus crash in Tenn., www.palmbeachpost.com October 2, 2013

Published on: October 1, 2013

Mysterious Chicago-area Train Collision Causes Dozens of Injuries

by Friedland | Carmona

According to officials, no one was at the controls of an empty commuter train on Monday when it crashed into another train at a suburban Chicago station. Dozens sustained injuries as a result of this mysterious crash. Officials are still unsure of how the train began moving. Video footage reveals that no one was operating the 4-car Chicago Transit Authority train as it moved the wrong way down the tracks towards a train parked about ten miles west of Chicago at the Harlem Avenue station. Investigators are still trying to determine whether the train somehow began moving on its own or whether someone set the train in motion intentionally or otherwise.

Amalgamated Transit Union President Robert Kelly stated that he had never before heard of a train just moving on its own. In order to start a train, according to Kelly, an individual would have to have a special key and know how to use that key. However, if investigators discover that the train did move down the tracks on its own, this issue must be addressed immediately, as it could happen to another train and the results could be worse next time. Authorities stated that around four dozen individuals who were on the parked train when the crash occurred were treated for minor injuries at the scene and at local hospitals.

Chicago Transit Authority spokesman Brian Steele stated that he, too, had never heard of an incident like this before. Steele stated that investigators are currently studying the video footage, signaling systems, and other available data in an effort to piece together what caused the crash. One of the issues with this process is that there are likely no witnesses who saw how the train first began rolling down the tracks. The train was originally parked in a spot beyond where any commuters or Chicago Transit Authority workers were able to see. A Chicago Transit Authority supervisor tried to stop the moving train by contacting it after he first saw it roll through the Forest Park station. After no one was able to make contact and stop the train, the motorman of the train parked at Harlem Avenue warned passengers in the first car to brace themselves for impact.

Dozens injured in Chicago-area train collision, www.palmbeachpost.com September 30, 2013

Published on: September 5, 2013

Bill Introduced to Ban Red-Light Cameras in Florida

by Friedland | Carmona

There is another push in Tallahassee to remove red-light cameras from public streets across Florida. On Wednesday, the Senate’s Transportation Committee chairman, Jeff Brandes, a Republican from St. Petersburg, filed SB 144. This bill would ban the use of red-light cameras, which are currently in place in at least seventy-six jurisdictions throughout Florida. Brandes said, “This program was originally sold as being about safety. I have come to believe that it’s now about revenue.” Every citation brings in $158, with $83 going directly to the state. The remaining $75 is divided between the camera vendor and the municipality.

According to the Florida Department of Revenue, the cameras generated more than $62.5 million for the state between July 2012 and June 2013. American Traffic Solutions, a Tempe, Arizona company, is the company that is most involved in the Florida red-light camera business. It operates cameras in about seventy cities and counties, including Tampa, St. Petersburg, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and New Port Richey. The company has employed twenty-four lobbyists to work on its behalf in Tallahassee. The company is well-aware that ever since the red-light cameras were legalized in 2011, bills have been filed seeking their repeal.

An ATS spokesman, Charles Territo, countered the notion that the cameras are all about revenue by turning to company statistics. From the end of 2011 to the middle of 2013, company records show that the average number of citations per camera fell forty percent for cameras installed prior to 2011 and by over half for cameras installed between July 2011 and July 2012. Brandes said the bill he introduced would not erase existing contracts, but it would preclude the forming of new contracts or the renewal of existing contracts. Brandes believes something must be done “because the system is broken.”

Bill banning red-light cameras introduced in Tallahassee, www.miamiherald.com September 4, 2013

Published on: August 24, 2013

Fifty-Two Injured when Southern California Tour Bus Overturned Thursday

by Friedland | Carmona

More than fifty people were injured Thursday when a tour bus carrying individuals to an Indian casino overturned after sideswiping a car on a Southern California freeway east of Los Angeles. According to California Highway Patrol Officer Elizabeth Van Valkenburgh, the bus driver made an “unsafe lane change” into the left lane, struck a car, “and then overcorrected to the right.” The bus skidded across the freeway, went through a chain-link fence, and fell down a dirt embankment, coming to a rest on its right side between the freeway and railroad tracks.

Ambulances and helicopters quickly converged on the scene on Interstate 210 in Irwindale. Firefighters placed green, yellow, and red tarps down to evaluate those injured in the crash. According to doctors and fire officials, fifty-two people, mostly elderly, sustained minor injuries. Van Valkenburgh stated that at least one person reported wearing a seatbelt. Some passengers exited the vehicle on their own, while others needed the assistance of firefighters and drivers who stopped to help, reported Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Brian Jordan. The bus driver, Jinquan Yang, a fifty-five-year-old Alhambra resident, suffered minor injuries. CHP reported that he was properly licensed and had not been charged. The driver whose car was struck by Yang was not injured.

Eight bus passengers were in need of immediate medical attention, five of whom were flown to Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center. Dr. Leo Rodriguez said those patients were in guarded condition. Three people were treated at Huntington Memorial Hospital, including an eighty-six-year-old man who had broken ribs. The victims ranged in age from twenty-five to ninety-two. The accident occurred around 10 a.m. under normal weather conditions. The freeway’s eastbound lanes were at least partially blocked for approximately six hours.

Tour bus overturns along Calif. freeway; 52 hurt, www.miamiherald.com August 22, 2013

Published on: August 19, 2013

Disney Hotel Employee Killed in Accident Involving Disney Bus

by Friedland | Carmona

A Disney hotel employee died Friday afternoon when her car was rear-ended by a Disney Magical Express bus. This bus is a complementary shuttle service that transports guests between the airport and Disney’s resort. Police have identified the deceased woman as sixty-three-year-old Solange Blain. Witnesses to the accident report that Blain came to a stop in the middle of a road near Walt Disney World’s Epcot theme park near Orlando, Florida. The Disney bus was traveling behind Blain and was unable to brake fast enough to avoid the crash. On Sunday, Disney officials confirmed that Blain was an employee at one of the park’s hotels.

Disney officials offered heartfelt condolences to Blain’s family and released a statement expressing their sadness regarding “the loss of a fellow cast member.” According to the Florida Highway Patrol, there were thirty-six passengers on the bus when the accident occurred and two were hospitalized with minor injuries. Disney officials are also providing support to the bus passengers. No charges have yet been filed.

1 dead following Disney World bus crash, www.palmbeachpost.com August 18, 2013

Published on: August 12, 2013

Ten Injured in Forty-One Vehicle Pileup on Major Highway in Central Virginia

by Friedland | Carmona

Forty-one cars, trucks, and other vehicles were involved in a pileup in Lexington, Virginia on Sunday that injured ten people. According to state police, the massive pileup on Interstate 81 in central Virginia was caused by a combination of factors, including a two-car accident, torrential downpours, and speeding. State police Sgt. A.D. Nicely stated that some of the tractor-trailers involved in Sunday’s pileup remained overturned on the side of the road Monday. Crews planned to remove these remaining vehicles later in the day Monday, once traffic decreased.

Numerous witnesses and victims were interviewed by police and indicated that a two-car accident occurred before the massive pileup. According to police, one of these cars came to rest in the median, blocking part of one lane while the other car blocked part of another lane, both facing in the same direction. As cars were trying to navigate between the two automobiles involved in the crash, a blinding rain began, reducing visibility to twenty feet or less. The original crash, along with the heavy rain and excessive speed all came together at once to cause vehicle after vehicle to collide.

In total, six tractor-trailers were involved in the pileup. Nicely said that some of the truck drivers veered off the road and overturned to avoid crashing into other automobiles, which likely saved lives. “I believe that decision on their behalf saved us a lot more injuries or fatalities. You don’t know what would have happened when you start having 80,000-pound vehicles slamming into 2,000-pound vehicles.” All southbound lanes on Interstate 81 were closed for hours. The highway did not fully reopen until late Sunday evening. Fortunately, no one suffered life-threatening injuries. Two of the ten injured individuals were airlifted to hospitals.

41-vehicle pileup in Virginia injures 10 people, www.palmbeachpost.com August 12, 2013