Houston Personal Injury Attorneys – Smith & Hassler

A fire truck was stopped on Highway 288 this morning with light and sirens operating when a black Ranger Rover rear-ended the fire truck, injuring a Houston Fire Department firefighter. The fire truck was stopped to assist a motorist who vehicle was disabled. Channel 2 News Houston reported on the accident, and while the driver of the Range Rover was not identified by law enforcement, Channel 2 ran the license plate on the Range Rover and learned it is registered to 29-year old former NFL player Brian Iwuh. Iwuh, who was born in Houston, played for the University of Colorado, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Chicago Bears and the Denver Broncos. Houston Police Department spokesperson J.R. Roberts told Channel 2 that the DWI task force was at the hospital with the driver of the Range Rover and will make a determination whether a case needs to be referred to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office. The firefighter who was hurt in the accident is expected to recover well.  According to Channel 2’s story, family members of the driver showed up at the accident scene and were drinking beer. The driver of the Range Rover has not yet been identified, but it was reported he was not wearing a seat belt.

Houston drunk driving accident attorneys; Houston automobile accident attorneys

Photo credit: Channel 2 News

Photo credit: Channel 2 News Houston

Photo credit: Channel 2 News Houston

A pickup truck rear-ended a Chevrolet Monte Carlo at 9:45 p.m. last night, Thursday May 30th, killing the driver of the Monte Carlo and injuring his female passenger.  According to Channel 2 News Houston, the Monte Carlo and the pickup truck were both heading westbound on the North 610 Loop when the pickup struck the car, causing major rear-end damage.  As the photograph shows, the trunk of the Monte Carlo is completely collapsed.  The driver and passenger of the Monte Carlo were both trapped inside the vehicle, probably because the rear-end impact pushed the rear panels forward jamming shut the driver and passenger doors.  The driver of the Monte Carlo was taken to the hospital where he died. Police say the pickup truck driver was not intoxicated at the time of the crash and no charges are anticipated.

Photo credit: Channel 2 News Houston

Photo credit: KHOU

Unfortunately this is a fairly typical event for a holiday weekend in Houston.  A drunk driver caused a head-on crash at around 2:15 a.m. on Memorial Day (Monday) morning.  The male driver was heading westbound on Washington Avenue when he veered over into the center lane at Snover Street, hitting another car head-on, pushing that car backwards into a third vehicle.  A female driver in the vehicle that was struck head-on was transported to the hospital.  The suspected drunk driver was arrested at the scene: his name has not been released.  Washington Avenue was temporarily shut down in both directions as police worked the scene.

Drunk driving accident attorney; car accident attorney.

A motorcyclist was seriously injured in an early morning crash today.  The rider was heading down Briar Forest near the West Sam Houston Parkway around 3:00 a.m. when he struck the rear of a garbage truck that was pulling out of a business.  Houston Police Department representative Javier Tapia told Channel 2 News that the motorcycle rider wound up underneath the garbage truck and sustained head injuries, including a fractured skull.  He was rushed to the hospital.

In some of the comments to Channel 2’s story readers seem quick to blame the motorcyclist for the accident, but they may well be rushing to judgment.  For example, the timing of when the trash truck pulled out into the main lanes is relevant to fault.  Also based on Channel 2’s photograph (see below) the area where the accident happened does not appear to be particularly well-lit. Maybe the garbage truck had it’s lights on, maybe it didn’t.

Photo credit: Channel 2 News

49-year old Aurora Garcia and her 17-year old son were driving eastbound on Hardin Store Road north of Tomball when their vehicle was struck head-on by a Chevy pickup truck. Ms. Garcia was driving a 1996 Toyota Sedan and her 17-year old was her passenger.  Trooper Kenneth Hebert with the Texas Department of Public Safety told Channel 2 News that a 2000 model Chevy pickup truck was heading westbound on Hardin Store Road when it failed to maintain its lane in a curve, crossed the center line and struck Ms. Garcia’s car head-on. It appears that the pickup fled the scene, rather than the occupants fleeing the scene as earlier reports had indicated.  Although a perimeter was set up, police have not yet caught the culprits.  Ms. Garcia’s son was rushed to hospital in critical condition; Ms. Garcia herself was pronounced dead at the scene.

Photo credit: Channel 2 News Houston

A Houston Police Department officer is lucky to be alive after his patrol car was struck by a pickup truck in a major car accident on US 290 at Hollister Road. Investigators say the office was using his patrol car to block traffic while working the scene of another accident when his vehicle was struck at around 4:00 a.m. Both the police officer and the driver of the pickup truck were taken to hospital.  Channel 2 Houston’s story does not state whether the driver of the pickup was impaired, but someone hits a police car on the freeway at 4:00 a.m. in Houston, the probability of alcohol involvement is extremely high.

Photo credit: Channel 2 News

A Houston Fire Department Captain was injured over the weekend when his fire truck was hit by a suspected drunk driver. At 10:30 p.m. on Saturday a fire crew was on their way to a call on US 290 and was making a turn onto West 34th Street in Houston when their fire truck was hit by a pickup. The Captain was taken to the emergency room, fortunately not for life-threatening injuries. The driver who caused the accident was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving. The fire truck had lights and sirens operating when it was hit by the pickup truck.

Photo credit: Channel 2 News Houston

25-year old James Dean “Jimmy” Burnett of Goliad, Texas died Monday May 6th when a pipe fell on him at a construction job site in Karnes County, Texas. The San-Antonio Express News reports that the accident happened at a construction site operated by BHP Billitron Petroleum. Jimmy worked for an oilfield services company called Jet Maintenance, Inc. based out of Victoria, Texas. Services are pending with Grace Funeral Home in Goliad. BHP is one of the largest operators in the Eagle Ford, with more than 330,000 acres in the region. BHP Billitron Petroleum is the Houston-based oil and gas division of the Australian mining company that purchased Petrohawk Energy Corp. in 2011. According to OSHA, there have been 11 worker deaths since 2009 due to work site accidents at the Eagle Ford.

Police arrested 29-year old Anthony Adam Garcia for allegedly driving drunk and crashing into the back of a HPD patrol car that was conducting a traffic stop (ironically on another suspected drunk driver). The three car accident happened on the I-45 feeder road near Aldine Bender at around 3:00 a.m. on Monday. The stopped police car had its lights on at the time, but Garcia apparently didn’t slow down, and obviously didn’t move over. Garcia’s vehicle flipped over in the  wreck and the impact was enough to push the police car forward into the pickup truck stopped ahead of it, shattering the back window glass of the cruiser. According to Channel 2’s report nobody was injured, including a police dog sitting in the back of the cruiser.

A motorcycle rider was injured in an accident this morning when he was hit by a wrong-way driver in the HOV lane of the Southwest Freeway (US 59) during this morning’s rush hour.  The accident happened around 8:30 a.m. at 59 and Hillcroft.  METRO officials say the wrong-way driver was elderly, and that after the motorcycle was struck by the wrong-way vehicle it then hit a third vehicle.  The motorcyclist was transported to Ben Taub General Hospital in Houston.

Photo credit: Tim Wetzel / KHOU 11 News