Crash with FedEx Truck Results in Mother and Child Stuck on Interstate 540 in Raleigh, North Carolina

RALEIGH, NC- Abc11.com writes that a mother and child were involved in an accident with a FedEx truck that left them pinned beneath the larger vehicle. The woman and child were in a smaller vehicle that went under the tractor-trailer and was pinned beneath it on Interstate 540. The crash took place during a heavy rainstorm late last week after dark. Both of the victims are alive and were taken to a local hospital for treatment.*

Crashes involving large trucks often end in tragedy. The massive vehicles present abundant risks to smaller cars and passenger vehicles. One of the many risks involves a vehicle crashing beneath the side of the truck trailer. “Under-ride” crashes are those that involve a car smashing into the side of the trailer. These collisions can lead to the windshield and the person or people behind the windshield smacking into the side of the truck. About half of all fatal crashes involving large trucks are under-ride collisions. 

According to studies, many of these deaths and injuries could be prevented if trucks were universally equipped with side guards. Trucks already have rear-guards to prevent this type of accident from occurring if a vehicle strikes the back of a truck. 

One study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) showed that the use of side guards could lower truck accident injuries by a massive 90 percent in collisions involving cars striking the sides of trucks. 

The IIHS believes side guards could be lifesaving. However, at high speeds, these safety features may still fail to prevent injuries and deaths. The currently used rear-guards are not designed to work when vehicles reach highway speeds. 

Accident News is a safety and education initiative from Montlick & Associates, designed to help people better understand and thereby avoid common accident causes.  To learn more about our injury prevention programs, including iridesafe.com - click here. We hope you are never in an accident, but if you or family member are injured, call Montlick & Associates 24/7 for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333) or use our live chat at Montlick.com.

Source:https://abc11.com/traffic/crash-pins-mother-child-under-fedex-truck-in-raleigh/5663691/