On behalf of Rooney Law Firm posted in Trucking Accidents.
A crash involving comedian Tracy Morgan made headlines across the nation in 2014. The accident involved six vehicles. One of them was Morgan’s limousine; the other was a big-rig truck. During the accident, Morgan was seriously injured and one person in the limousine was killed.
Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board recently spoke at a public hearing. They presented findings regarding numerous factors in the accident, including the fact that the truck was moving at 20 mph above the posted speed limit. They also noted that the driver was awake for a period of 28 hours prior to the crash.
In addition to driver fatigue, the investigators pointed to numerous safety and training issues as factors in the accident. Individuals in the limousine were not wearing seat belts, say reports, and there were limited entry and exit points from the limousine at the time of the crash. The investigators also say emergency medical responders made some errors and did not appear early on to understand how serious the injuries at the crash site were.
The investigators reported that there were communication problems on the ground at the accident site. They state that a wide response from emergency workers in several jurisdictions might have complicated communication issues. In addition to recommending better training for emergency workers in the state, the investigators also recommended that companies such as Wal-Mart create more robust policies to manage driver fatigue.
While this accident has been reported widely in the media across the country due to the involvement of a celebrity, serious accidents can happen to anyone. If you are dealing with injuries suffered in a truck accident, you might be able to obtain compensation for medical expenses and other losses.
Source: The New York Times, “Tracy Morgan Crash Largely Result of Truck Driver’s Fatigue, Regulators Say,” Benjamin Mueller, Aug. 11, 2015
