Two Deadly Accidents Resulted in Five Deaths and 12 Seriously Injured
Jun 23, 2015
Austin Personal Injury Lawyers – Perlmutter & Schuelke, LLP
Austin, TX (Law Firm Newswire) June 23, 2015 – Sometimes good Samaritans lose their lives trying to help others.
It was early one recent Sunday morning when five people died and 12 were seriously injured in a collision that ended in flames. Involved in the wreck on I-30 were an 18-wheeler and several other vehicles. The accident happened just near the Oakland Boulevard exit.
According to police and eyewitness reports, the first accident that resulted in a chain of other wrecks happened at approximately 2:30 a.m. There was a single-vehicle accident and others stopped to see if they could help at that accident scene. It appears that those attempting to help at the scene of the first accident may have been standing in a traffic lane.
While they were outside attempting to help the victim of the first crash, a big rig plowed into the first vehicle, continuing on and hitting several other vehicles and people. The 18-wheeler then burst into flames. The cause of the fire was undetermined at the time of the accident. The trucker sustained minor injuries.
Emergency responders discovered four dead at the scene. One died later at the hospital. Two were hospitalized and listed as being in critical condition, another with serious injuries survived.
“It’s hard to tell precisely what happened in this instance,” said noted Austin personal injury attorney, Brooks Schuelke, not involved in the case. “On the surface, there could be a case made for the trucker driving while distracted and/or possibly speeding. There may also be issues with the speculation that those who were killed or injured were standing in a traffic lane.”
In situations involving accidents with big rigs, it is vitally important to contact a capable and knowledgeable personal injury attorney as soon as possible. Evidence must be preserved at the scene, pictures taken, the trucking company must be asked to produce their driver logs immediately and witnesses need to be tracked down.
Additionally, if there is a question relating to jurisdictions (for example, a trucking company could be from California, but the wreck happened in Texas), there are issues over who may be named in any subsequent lawsuit.
“It’s tough to hear about the deaths of the good Samaritans that stopped to help at the scene of the first accident. There is a high likelihood that many of the families of the deceased will seek to file wrongful death lawsuits against the trucker and possibly the trucking company,” said Schuelke “depending on whether or not there were maintenance issues with the truck.”
Learn more at http://www.civtrial.com
Perlmutter & Schuelke, PLLC
206 East 9th Street, Ste. 1511
Austin, TX 78701
Call (512) 476-4944
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