Distracted Tennessee Truck Driver Rams Stopped Vehicles

There are all sorts of simple rules for driving on an interstate highway. One important thing to keep in mind is to keep a look out ahead to gauge the speed and movement of traffic ahead of you. This sounds intuitive, but with the increasing number of electronic devices being marketed to drivers these days this simple rule is not being followed. The other day I wrote about a tractor-trailer operator who was asleep at the wheel and when he came upon traffic that was stopped for an accident, he rammed into the cars on front of him and killed ten people.

A Brentwood Tennessee man died Friday afternoon of injuries he received when a tractor-trailer failed to slow for slower traffic and rammed into several cars. Investigators have not yet determined what the truck driver was doing, or not doing, as the case may be, but he sure wasn’t watching the road ahead. Traffic on I-40 in Wilson County had slowed because of a brush fire alongside the road. To show how distracted the driver must have been, he not only didn’t see the traffic slowing, he didn’t the smoke from the brush fire.

Questions for the investigators include, was he texting or talking on his cell phone? Had he fallen asleep at the wheel? Did he have a medical emergency that made it impossible for him to control the truck? Lot’s of question for the investigators, but for the family of the unfortunate man who was killed, there’s just one question, why? My prayers go out to the family and friend of this man and my hopes that other drivers who witnessed this tragedy or read about, it will learn the lesson that cost this man his life.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car/tractor-trailer accident don’t hesitate to contact an experienced Nashville personal injury lawyer like those you will find at Phillip Miller & Associates.

Drowsy Driving

As an experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer accident lawyer I am regularly called upon to look at the facts surrounding truck accidents in and around the Volunteer state. To actually determine the cause of an accident many factors have to be studied. There are some things that can be inferred from the circumstances leading up to a crash. Reference a recent Tennessee interstate highway accident involving two tractor-trailers.

Two trucks are traveling west on I-40 in Roane County in east Tennessee when the following truck simply rams into the rear-end of the leading truck. The following truck burst into flames and the driver was killed. The leading truck was damaged and it’s driver was injured. Her condition is not known at this time.

The first question the investigators will have to answer is, what was the following driver doing moments before and at the time of the collision? My experience tells me that the following driver had fallen asleep at the wheel, or had suffered some sort of medical emergency. An autopsy will possibly be able to tell whether the driver suffered a heart attack or stoke.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates conservatively that each year drowsy driving “is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 fatalities.” But among all the major factors that cause or contribute to crashes, like speeding, alcohol use, and weather situations, drowsiness is the most difficult for police and other crash investigators to detect and quantify.

It’s nearly impossible to determine with certainty the cause of a fatal crash where drowsy driving is suspected. However, there are a number of clues at a crash scene that tell investigators that the person fell asleep at the wheel.

If you or someone you love has been hurt in a serious Tennessee highway accident due to someone’s negligence, then you may be feeling angry, frightened, or even alone in your suffering.

There is no reason for you to bear your burden alone.  The experience of a Tennessee highway accident is traumatic enough and your recovery will bring its own challenges.  You don’t need the added stress of worrying about who will pay for the medical care you need, how your car will be repaired, and if the individuals responsible for your suffering will be brought to justice.  This is the time to call Phillip Miller & Associates, the law firm of local Tennessee attorneys and staff who for the past 25 years have dedicated their lives to protecting the rights of injured men, women, and children in Tennessee.