Dangerous Road Conditions

We have often talked about the responsibility of state and local officials to remedy known dangerous road conditions. I don’t have any specific statistics as to the number of serious accidents at a very sharp turn at an interstate intersection where I-440 enter I-40 just past Charlotte Blvd in downtown Nashville.

As one enters the turn there are rollover warning signs that, in my view, come far too late in the process to be very effective. There are two problems in my view that need to be addressed:

1. Speed enforcement – The speed limit is 55 MPH on the approach to this dangerous turn, but my experience is that few if any vehicle are going the speed limit. The reason for this is that speed enforcement on I-440 is sporadic and ineffective.

2. Warning Signs – There are not enough warning signs and they are positioned far to late for a driver to respond.

This dangerous situation, may or may not, have been the problem that lead to the death of a 23-year-old man early Saturday morning. The man lost control of his Tacoma pickup truck at this turn, rolled over into a tractor-trailer truck in the other lane, causing the truck to roll and catch fire. The truck driver was uninjured but the interstate was blocked for five hours.

An autopsy will tell investigators if the young man was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. It might be time for the state to look to more efficient road signs and the Metro Government to review it’s speed enforcement policies.

If you or a loved one are injured or killed in a Nashville auto accident and the cause of the accident is a dangerous road condition, contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out your rights and remedies. Call 615-356-2000.

Good Tennessee Samaritans Save Teens Life

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney I oftentimes see the worst in people. But on occasion, I find a story that raises my spirits and makes me proud to be a Tennessean. Reference a recent story in the Murfreesboro Post about an accident in which a teenage driver lost control of her car, left the road, and rolled over into the fast moving Stones River.

This accident should have ended in tragedy but a handful of Good Samaritans set aside their personal safety and went to the young woman’s rescue. Let me set the stage here. It’s winter, and unusually cold winter at that, and add to that a wet winter, so the Stones River is up and running. Neighbors and passers-by see the girl’s car go into the river and rush down and get into the river and attempt to free the seatbelted girl but they could not get the door open.

Several people flipped the vehicle over and held on to it to keep it from being swept downstream while other rushed off to get rope. Eventually they secured the vehicle with ropes until members of the local rescue squad arrived and were able to free her.

I’d like to give a big shout out to Celeste Middleton, Amy Sayles, David Tickle, Alex Farsian and Justin Price, risked their lives to save a fellow human being. God bless you all.

From the stand point of an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney what struck me, other than the story of heroic effort by these folks, were the comments of some of those who witnessed this and numerous other accidents in this same spot, that indicated that a problem had existed for a number of years and the County had failed to do anything about it.

I don’t represent anyone involved in this event but if I did, I’d explore the possibility that the County might be liable for the damages in this accident. I’m just saying, if the County government had knowledge of a dangerous roadway condition and failed to take any action that they would be liable.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a government agency who has ignored a known highway hazard, contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.