Man Survives Potentially Fatal Truck Accident in Texas
Because of the substantial differences in both size and weight, motor vehicle accidents between commercial trucks and cars are often a death sentence for occupants of the smaller vehicle. This is one of many reasons why negligent truck drivers who cause accidents are often named as defendants in wrongful death or personal injury lawsuits.
That being said, a Texas truck accident that happened earlier this week has been getting a lot of national attention for two reasons. First, it was caught on camera from the point of view of the minivan driver who was struck. The second reason is that the victim somehow survived the crash and suffered only minor injuries.
Yesterday, a Texas A&M professor was driving his minivan in College Station. The trip was being recorded because he had installed a dashcam about a year ago just in case he ever got into a crash. As he slowed to a stop at a red light, a cement truck traveling in the opposite direction blew through the red light at high speed. While going through the intersection, the top-heavy truck began to tilt onto its side before crashing head-on into the minivan.
The accident happened so fast that the minivan driver had to watch the video just to remember and analyze what had occurred. Although this accident could have easily been fatal, neither he nor the cement truck driver was seriously hurt. The minivan driver only suffered cuts on his legs.
Despite the extremely fortunate outcome of this crash, it is possible that the man could pursue a lawsuit. In the seconds leading up to the crash, the cement truck can be seen swerving sharply and otherwise moving erratically. This suggests that driver negligence may have been a factor in the accident.
This case also demonstrates how valuable a dashcam can be. If and when a car accident does occur, video from the device could serve as powerful evidence in a subsequent lawsuit.
Source: NY Daily News, “SEE IT: Texas professor walks from chilling head-on crash with cement truck,” Philip Caulfield, April 9, 2014.