A tragic chain of events resulted in a fatal motor vehicle wreck involving an eighteen-wheeler and three other vehicles. The pile-up happened on the southbound side of I-270 just south of Clayton. After the accident, the southbound lanes of the highway were closed for over six hours, as multiple agencies worked to remove the wreckage from the roadway and investigate the accident.
A pile-up, or chain reaction accident occurs when one accident or collision occurs and then other vehicles subsequently become ensnared in it. For example, in this recent pile-up accident, the initial incident took place when the driver of a van that was pulling a trailer lost control of their vehicle while they were driving southbound on I-270. As the driver of the van lost control of the vehicle, it crossed lanes, colliding with a tow truck and then a passenger car. During this collision, one or more of the vehicles ended up in the median. At some point during or after that accident, the driver of a tractor-trailer tried to avoid the wreckage. That eighteen-wheeler became entangled in the mess because, despite their efforts, the driver was unable to successfully maneuver around it. Things got worse when the van caught fire, and things continued to get worse when the semi-truck caught on fire. Four people were involved in this devastating and destructive four-vehicle chain reaction crash. One died, two others received serious injuries, and one, the driver of the tow truck, escaped from the experience without harm.
All motor vehicle accidents are tragic, especially those that claim one or more lives and cause large amounts of injury and property damage. Fortunately, drivers can sometimes avoid becoming ensnared in a pile-up accident by employing safe driving strategies. One such strategy is maintaining a constant awareness of the weather and the road conditions where you are driving. We all know that weather is changeable, but did you know that road conditions can change just as quickly as the weather? In fact, some of the most dangerous road conditions can occur right after a change from dry to wet weather, partly because of how the precipitation affects the road surface and partly because drivers are often slow to adjust their driving to variations in the weather. If you reduce your speed as soon as you notice a change in the weather, you will put yourself at an advantage by being able to better maintain control of your vehicle and being better able to see what is happening on the road ahead of you with enough time to safely adjust your course if needed. A second safe driving practice that can help you avoid accidents of all kinds, including chain reaction accidents, is leaving plenty of room between your vehicle and the other vehicles that are near you on the roadway. Space provides time within which you can react to changes in the positions of other vehicles, and can give you enough time to stop or change course safely if a vehicle ahead of you loses control or has a collision.
Barrett Law PLLC: Serving Mississippi Trucking Accident Victims
If you or someone that you love got hurt or killed in a pile-up accident involving a tractor trailer, be sure to choose an attorney who has experience with handling trucking accident cases. To learn more, call the Mississippi Trucking Accident Attorneys at Barrett Law PLLC, at 1 (800) 707-9577, to schedule a free consultation.