A car accident in San Diego resulted in severe injuries for a female pedestrian. U-T San Diego reports that the injury collision happened near the intersection of Coronado Avenue and Green Bay Street in the Nestor area. Police say a vehicle, which pulled out of a driveway, struck the victim. The woman sustained a broken leg and hip as well as abdominal injuries. Officials are still investigating the cause of this major injury collision.
January 25, 2012--Reno, NV--a shuttle bus carrying tourists from Harrah's to Reno-Tahoe International Airport crashed Tuesday morning, injuring one passenger. Nevada State Police say that a mechanical failure was the cause of the bus accident.
The accident occurred on Highway 50 near Tahoe, when the shuttle carrying 18 passengers and driven by 57-year-old Cynthia Hendrickson spun around in the road and crashed into a concrete median. A broken drive shaft was determined to have caused the bus to spin out of control. Read full story »
A dog bite incident in Riverside County resulted in injuries for a mother and her 6-year-old son the morning of January 24, 2012. The Press-Enterprise reports that the dog attack occurred in a residential neighborhood near Indian Avenue and Sunnymead Boulevard in Moreno Valley. Officials say the woman was walking with her son and a younger child whom she was pushing in a stroller when they were attacked by a 120-pound bull mastiff. The dog bit a part of the boy's ear off and bit his mom in her hip. The dog's owner intervened and was able to take the dog back to his house. The younger child was unharmed. The two injured victims were transported to a local medical center for treatment and are expected to recover. Officials are investigating the incident.
My thoughts and prayers are with the injured victims of this dog attack. I wish them the very best for a quick and full recovery.
A car accident in San Bernardino involving a hit-and-run driver proved fatal for a Huntington Beach man identified as Victor Joseph Scallo. The Orange County Register reports that the fatal hit-and-run crash occurred the morning of January 22, 2012 near the intersection of San Bernardino Avenue and Commerce Street in Fontana. Scallo died at the scene, but the driver fled. Officials are still looking for the hit-and-run driver who is at large.
My heartfelt sympathies go out to everybody who knew and loved Victor Joseph Scallo, the victim of this hit-and-run car accident. This grieving family will be in my thoughts and prayers.
A car accident in Garden Grove resulted in critical injuries for an elderly man identified as 97-year-old Augustine Choi. The Orange County Register reports that the major injury collision occurred near the intersection of Brookhurst Street and Stanford Avenue. Choi was walking in a crosswalk when he was struck by a vehicle. Choi was taken to an area hospital with critical injuries. An update on his condition is not available. It is not clear if the driver was cited or charged in connection with this incident.
I sympathize with Augustine Choi and his family for what they are going through at this time. I wish him the very best for a quick and full recovery. Please keep him and his family members in your prayers.
A car accident in San Diego, which officials say, may have been caused by a distracted driver, resulted in catastrophic injuries for a bicyclist. U-T San Diego reports that the injury collision happened near the intersection of Sorrento Valley Boulevard and Whispering Heights Lane the afternoon of January 19, 2012. The bicyclist was traveling east in the bike lane when he was struck from behind by a Toyota sedan. The bicyclist was transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries. Officials say the woman was seen talking on a cell phone just before the crash.
My thoughts and prayers are with this critically injured bicyclist. The article states that doctors have said the man, even if he survives, is likely to be paraplegic. Tragic! Please keep this victim and his family in your prayers.
A car accident in San Diego proved fatal for 92-year-old Harold Tolliver. U-T San Diego reports that the fatal pedestrian accident happened at Shoreline and Toscana drives in the University City area of San Diego. He was crossing the roadway when a vehicle driven by a 43-year-old man struck Tolliver. He was transported to an area medical center where he died. Officials are still looking into what caused this crash, but they are saying that the driver's car windows were fogged up at the time.
I offer my heartfelt sympathies to everyone who knew and loved Harold Tolliver. Please keep them in your prayers.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), motorcycle accidents account for thirteen percent of all fatalities per year, although only three percent of the vehicles on the road are motorcycles. Motorcyclists are far more likely to be injured or killed in an accident than drivers or passengers in cars; in fact, the NHTSA estimates that the fatality rate for motorcyclists is 5.5 times that of victims of car accidents. Read full story »
A 53-year-old woman who was fatally injured in a car accident in Garden Grove involving a suspected drunk driver has been identified by officials as Aida Gonzalez. The Orange County Register reports that the deadly crash happened on the 22 Freeway near Bolsa Chica Road in Garden Grove. Officials said 21-year-old Charline Vilchis struck a stopped Toyota Camry from behind. The Camry in turn struck a Jeep Liberty. Gonzalez, who was in the Camry, sustained fatal injuries in this crash. Vilchis was booked on suspicion of DUI.
I offer my deepest condolences to everyone who knew and loved Aida Gonzalez for their tragic and heartbreaking loss. They will be in my prayers.
January 16, 2012--Nevada City, CA--In a terrible accident which occurred January 12 in the Nevada City area, a worker was decapitated while clearing debris from a roadside and feeding it into a wood chipper.
Martin Lara, a 50-year-old Applegate resident, was apparently clearing brush from beside a house along the Indian Shack Road, and was feeding large pieces of wood into a chipper. The wood apparently became stuck, and a rope which was used to feed wood into the machine wrapped around Lara’s neck, decapitating him. The Nevada County Sheriff’s Department is calling the incident an accident, but the investigation is ongoing.
The prevailing theory by authorities is that the rope became entangled somehow and was pulled into the machine, and as Lara was not able to reach the cutoff switch, he was unable to disentangle himself from the rope in time to escape.
My sincere and heartfelt condolences to Lara’s family in the time of this terrible tragedy.
Accident Statistics
According to the Bureau for Labor Statistics, work-related accidents and illnesses affected more than 4.1 million people per year, with at least half of those injured severely enough to require absences from work and ongoing medical care. At least 18 people per day die from work-related injuries, with construction workers accounting for one in five workplace-related deaths.
While car crashes are the leading cause of workplace fatalities, many other categories exist, such as falling objects, being caught between objects, and being pulled into machinery, as happened in this case.
What Caused This Accident
While authorities are still investigating the causes of this terrible accident, it does appear clear that there was a malfunction in the intended operation of the chipper unit and the rope used to secure large pieces of debris. Exactly how this malfunction occurred is still under investigation, but it does raise questions about the safety of the device.
If the victim could so easily be caught in the rope, were there safety measures which should have been taken to prevent this accident? Were the devices removed from this unit or not engaged properly? A good personal injury attorney should investigate the facts of this accident to determine if the injury was caused by negligence.
Liability Issues
In a case such as this, liability can attach to several people or groups. First, the company which manufactured the chipper could be liable if the safety devices in place were not sufficient to prevent the accident. The owner of the chipper could also be liable if he or she failed to install the required safety devices properly, or if the safety devices were allowed to malfunction. Finally, if something in the environment interfered with the proper working of the chipper, the landowner or the governmental agency which has jurisdiction over the road could have liability.
Until the circumstances are fully understood, a determination of liability will be impossible. Once the facts of the case become apparent, however, an expert <a href="http://www.bestattorney.com/personal_injury.html" target="_blank">personal injury attorney</a> can evaluate the liability issues and work with the family of the victim to recover damages for this terrible accident.
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