Trucking Accident

Tyra Andre was just 21-years-old and on her way to classes at a Jacksonville community college when her Ford Taurus was rear-ended by a large Ford F-450 truck belonging to the Ring Power Corporation on the I-10 merger ramp with I-95. Ever since the March 10, 2009 accident, her life has been a series of pain treatments for the neurological damage to her neck and back. Andre is a patient at the Jacksonville Spine Center and her pain treatments including chiropractic, injections, and radio frequency lesioning (RFL), which will be necessary for the remainder of her life.

In Duval Circuit Court on February 17, Farah & Farah attorneys Brian Flaherty and Richard Staggard leveled the playing field and told the six-person jury that the collision did cause the injuries Andre suffers with today, something the company denied. Attorneys for Ring Power had argued that Andre had an underlying condition and that she only suffered a sprain and strain.

It took the jurors just over two hours to deliver the $1,284,465.35 verdict, the bulk of which will go for Andre’s medical treatment both past and future.

“She was a young woman who experienced a life-altering event from a company that didn’t fully appreciate what the long-term consequences would be,” said attorney Flaherty.

Richard Staggard adds, “They were very dismissive of her.”

Andre, now 23, is continuing to attend classes in hopes of becoming a medical technologist.

Ring Power offers maintenance and rental programs for large equipment and machines for industry. The company’s world headquarters are located in St. Augustine, Florida.

The Farah & Farah law firm began in Jacksonville in 1979 and has become one of the largest law firms in North Florida. Farah & Farah levels the playing field for consumers with a team of respected and experienced attorneys, case managers, investigators, and legal assistants, and will personally meet with you to discuss your case. Visit our website or contact the Farah & Farah offices at 1-800-533-3555.

A Jacksonville man lost his life Saturday, September 25, when his car collided with a semi tractor-trailer in Nassau County. The accident occurred around 3 a.m. on U.S. 301. according to FirstCoastNews.com.

James Lee Knotts, 31, was northbound when he began to drift off the road. He crossed the center line and collided with an oncoming tractor-trailer. The Florida Highway Patrol is unsure of what caused this accident, but Knotts’ vehicle caught fire and was completely engulfed. He died at the scene. The semi driver was taken to Shands Jacksonville Medical Center with serious injuries.

Our sincere condolences are extended to the family and friends of Mr. Knotts.

It is tempting to blame the truck drivers in collisions with passenger automobiles. We cite statistics about tired truckers violating the limitations on time behind the wheel, or overloaded trucks and speeding. But in this instance, a passenger car appears to have contributed to the fatal Florida truck accident.

If I was a family member of Mr. Knotts, I would want some questions answered. First, a blood test should determine if there were drugs or alcohol involved. A check into cell phone records can determine if he was on the phone and driving distracted. An investigation into the car should be conducted. Did the vehicle go off the road because of a defective tire or other faulty components?

An experienced Florida truck accident attorney will want to conduct an investigation to answer these questions to determine if there is an at-fault party that may be held responsible for the loss of this life.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s office is looking for answers to the mysterious death of a young woman. The body of Delia S. Diaz, 22, was found inside a car that was partially submerged in a pond at an apartment complex, according to a News4Jax report.

The car was found at the Wimberly at Deerwood Apartments in the 9700 block of Touchton Road, Sunday afternoon, September 12. Police were alerted to the car by residents of the apartment complex. When a firefighter went into the water, he found the body in the submerged Saturn.

Jacksonville Fire Rescue dive team members helped remove the body and recover the car.

Police believe the vehicle had been in the water since Saturday night.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.

Our condolences are extended to the family and friends of Ms. Diaz for her sudden passing.

Submerged Vehicle Dangers
The Florida Highway Patrol reports about 4,800 cars end up submerged in Florida’s many canals and ponds every year when motorists drive off the road. AAA reports that about 300 people die in submerged vehicles nationwide every year.

What do you do if your car skids into a pond or lake?

Forget opening your door. It won’t open because the water pressure keeps it closed. Windows offer the best exit. It is best to roll down the window the minute the car hits the water and quickly get out. Some products such as LifeHammer are designed to break a passenger window in an emergency. Do not smash the windshield as too much water will come in and sink the car even faster. LifeHammer and ResQMe are sold at Ace Hardware for about $10 to $15 and they also cut through seat belts.

The American Trucking Association (ATA) is encouraging the federal government to focus on safe driver behavior as a top priority in its 2010-2015 Strategic Plan.

The ATA is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. It made these safety recommendations as part of its progressive safety agenda adopted in 2008. In comments filed January 5, 2010, ATA tells the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that distracted driving, speeding, and aggressive driving are dangerous behavior that become more so when congestion worsens and the number of trucks carrying freight on U.S. highways increases. ATA says to stress driver safety, states should focus on driver licensing and graduated driver licensing for teenage drivers. ATA also supports programs that educate and enforce such as Ticketing Aggressive Cars and Trucks (TACT).

ATA encourages states to reinstate a national maximum speed limit of 65 mph for all vehicles and governing the speed of all Class 7 and 8 trucks manufactured after 1992 to 65 mph or less.

These safety recommendations echo some safety recommendations in the annual report from the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. The group takes a close look at areas that need stronger enforcement – text messaging, graduated driver licensing (GDL) programs and ignition-interlock laws for drunk-driving offenders. Newly added to the set of 15 model laws includes seat belt use, booster seat and motorcycle helmet measures. The group also recommends setting a minimum age for a learner’s permit at age 16, and requiring an applicant for an unrestricted license to be age 18.

Given that car accidents in Florida and throughout the United States are the leading cause of death of teenage drivers, raising the driving age will cause much controversy but would also save lives.

Source:http://www.examiner.com/p-455200~ATA_to_NHTSA__Highway_Safety_Resources_Should_Focus_on_Driver_Behavior.html

Florida truck accident attorneys Farah & Farah, P.A., are pleased to announce the creation of Florida-TruckAccidents.com—an information site which exclusively covers trucking accidents.

Truck accidents injure or kill thousands of people on America’s highways each year. Yet, many victims feel that they are helpless and alone. Florida-TruckAccidents.com offers truck accident victims the opportunity to connect with others who have had their lives forever changed in an accident. By staying abreast of news and information about truck accident statistics, insurance settlements and other relevant issues, accident victims can reclaim their lives.

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Florida truck accident attorneys Farah & Farah, P.A., are pleased to announce the creation of Florida-TruckAccidents.com—an information site which exclusively covers trucking accidents.

Truck accidents injure or kill thousands of people on America’s highways each year. Yet, many victims feel that they are helpless and alone. Florida-TruckAccidents.com offers truck accident victims the opportunity to connect with others who have had their lives forever changed in an accident. By staying abreast of news and information about truck accident statistics, insurance settlements and other relevant issues, accident victims can reclaim their lives.

Read the rest »

This month, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) presented a fifteen-year trend in work-related accidents and fatalities, as the country recognizes National Safety Month. The span of years between 1992 and 2007 shows a declining rate of workplace fatalities, but also spotlights other trends on accident occurrences in the workplace. Read the rest »

It happened in early February. Middle school students from Ribault in Jacksonville were misbehaving by setting off an alarm on the emergency exit. This made it unsafe to continue to drive the bus. Instead of pulling over and transferring students to another bus, or calling police, the school bus driver instructed them to get off the bus at Rutledge Pearson Elementary School and find their own way home. Thankfully, no students were injured to due any Jacksonville pedestrian accidents that could have resulted from the kids being off the bus.

This is an unacceptable reaction by an employee of First Student, the bus company. There are rules and regulations in Duval County for bus drivers. Students are supposed to conduct themselves in a respectful way to keep everyone safe. If not, they can be suspended from school and parents have the responsibility to make sure that their children understand that.

But a bus driver also has a huge responsibility, delivering those children safety to and from school. For a child to find their way home from a different school, meant many walked to a bus stop or called their parents. Many parents understandably were angry. First Student says it is conducting an investigation. Cameras on the bus will help tell the story, but even with misbehaving children, this is not the proper response, but a response of pure frustration. The liability of the school district if something had happened is not something they want to hear about.

Fortunately no children were injured due to the bus driver’s negligence. If you have any questions regarding the safety of your child in relation to bus-driving laws, please contact the skilled Florida personal injury attorneys at Farah and Farah by calling 1-800-533-3555.

In order to reduce aggressive driving as part of the teen web site, recently mentioned in another blog Take The Wheel, Florida is defining aggressive driving.

Aggressive driving is responsible for 2/3rds of all fatalities on the road each year, or 27,000 deaths. That number is four times the number of deaths resulting from DUI or drunk under the influence.

Aggressive driving is driving under the influence of “impaired emotions” which then leads to high-risk decisions. It is a choice and can be modified with attitude and behavior modification.

Aggressive driving can precede Road Rage when others react on the roads from aggressive and careless drivers.

In order to crack down on teens who take out their aggression, the state is defining “aggressive driving” (Florida Statute 316.1923) as committing two or more of the following acts simultaneously or in succession:

1) Exceeding the posted speed limit by 15 mph or more
2) Unsafely or improperly changing lanes
3) Following another vehicle too closely
4) Failing to yield the right-of-way
5) Improperly passing
6) Violating traffic control and signal devices

Unfortunately this statute is not a charging statute. The office can mark the ticket that the driver was an aggressive driver. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles in Tallahassee then takes this data to provide statistical information on aggressive driving in the state which is used to make new laws.

Road Rage is a felony and a criminal assault using an automobile on another driver/passenger of an automobile. There are at least 200 deaths a year in Florida attributed to road rage. #

A driver from Kingsland, Georgia died Friday afternoon after a chain-reaction on the road involving a tractor-trailer.

The tractor-trailer was hauling a load of beer, heading south near Pecan Park Road, when he rear-ended a pickup truck that was pulling a cement mixer. All of this occurred on North Main Street in north Jacksonville, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The 45-year old driver, Tony Baker, was in a truck heading northbound when his truck hit the jackknifed tractor-trailer.

Baker was pronounced dead at the scene while the other drivers were okay.

There is no word on what caused this accident but it should remind us all of a report issued by the Associated Press last summer. It was reported that sick and disabled truck drivers carry commercial licenses even though they also qualify for disability payments. The Associated Press identified drivers who blacked out, collapsed or suffered major health problems behind the wheel of vehicles that can weigh 40 tons or more.
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