Commercial truck vs. auto accident on I-57 kills 1, injures 2

Driving on the interstate requires undivided attention to the roadway. This applies in particular to Illinois road construction areas. A pickup truck passenger recently lost her life in an accident that was apparently caused by an inattentive truck driver. In any commercial truck vs. auto accident, the occupants of passenger vehicles are vulnerable to severe or fatal injuries.

According to an Illinois State Police report, the accident that caused road closures of approximately four hours occurred on a recent Friday morning on southbound Interstate 57. Reportedly, two 72-year-old people were in a pickup truck between a tractor trailer and another commercial truck. As they approached a construction zone at which traffic had slowed down, the drivers of the tractor trailer and the pickup truck reduced speed.

Unfortunately, the driver of the commercial truck behind them did not reduce speed. He rear-ended the pickup truck, and the impact sent it into the back of the tractor trailer. While the woman passenger in the pickup truck was killed, the pickup driver and the driver of the truck who rear-ended the pickup were airlifted to two different hospitals for treatment of serious injuries. The tractor-trailer driver’s injuries were reported to be minor.

The accident is under investigation and charges are pending. The two occupants of the pickup truck appeared to be a couple, and the husband will be entitled to pursue financial relief through the Illinois civil justice system. He may file a personal injury claim to pursue recovery of his medical expenses and other financial losses, along with a wrongful death claim on behalf of his deceased wife. Following the devastation of such a commercial truck vs. auto accident, documented claims for out-of-pocket and emotional losses may be included in the recovery sought in a civil lawsuit.

Source: bentoneveningnews.com, “One fatality in I-57 wreck“, Shea Lazansky, Aug. 8, 2016