Houston Personal Injury Attorneys – Smith & Hassler

Channel 13 Eyewitness News is reporting a major collision involving a milk truck that sent two people to the hospital. The accident happened around 2:30am on Saturday May 21st on Highway 90 at Miller near Sheldon in northeast Harris County. Investigators say that two wreckers had stopped behind a Chevrolet car that had a flat tire on the right shoulder on Highway 90. A wrecker driver was out of his vehicle and was helping two women change a flat tire on the car. A Borden Milk truck approached from behind them in the right lane, traveling eastbound. As the milk truck traveled over the overpass the driver reached for something in the cab causing him to veer to the right, at which time the milk truck smashed into the back of the wrecker, sending it into the other wrecker and striking the wrecker driver standing beside the car. The accident continued as that wrecker was pushed into the back of the Chevrolet, knocking it down a grass embankment and onto the feeder road. The Borden Milk truck flipped on to its side. Both the wrecker driver who was struck and the passenger in the Chevrolet car were air lifted to Memorial Hermann Hospital. The other wrecker driver was sitting in her cab when the accident happened: she was taken by ambulance to an area hospital.

Smith & Hassler’s personal injury attorneys have represented hundreds of Texans injured in 18-wheeler accidents and have significant experience with the special issues in accidents involving commercial vehicles. If you or a family member have been seriously injured in an accident with an 18-wheeler, call 713 739 1250 or 1-800-WIN-WIN1 for a free consultation, or contact us online via our web site.

The driver of a stolen car was injured and life-flighted to Memorial Hermann hospital after a collision with an 18-wheeler on FM1960 last night. The 18-wheeler driver was headed westbound on FM1960 when the driver of the white car ran a red light while heading northbound on Stuebner Airline Road. The 18-wheeler crashed into the white-colored Ford car and pushed it about 100 feet, pinning the car beneath the 18-wheeler. Emergency crews had to cut the car driver out of the vehicle: the car he was driving had been reported stolen and the man did not have identification on him. Deputies said the driver smelled of alcohol.

An 18-wheeler collided with a stolen car that ran a red light

ABC Channel 13 eyewitness news is reporting a tragic accident involving a passenger car and an 18-wheeler that left a 21-year old University of Houston student dead. The accident happened around 9:00PM on Thursday April 14th on the north 610 loop near McCarty. According to police the big rig was driving down McCarty and tried to make a left turn. The student’s car drove under the trailer, shearing the roof off the car and killing the student instantly. The driver of the 18-wheeler was unhurt and police are currently investigating to determine which driver ran the red light. Our prayer and sympathies to the family and friends of the student, whose identity has not been released.

A UH student was killed when this car struck a big rig's trailer

Click2Houston.com is reporting two deaths in separate but related accidents stemming from a police pursuit. A man was attempting to evade METRO police officers when he fled across I-45 at Crosstimbers on Tuesday April 5th: he was struck by a car and killed, and that collision then caused another fatal crash according to Houston police. The incident happened shortly after 10:00PM. Allegedly the man was suspected of assaulting and robbing someone near downtown Houston, after which he got on a METRO bus and exited at a stop at Acres Homes. METRO police then caught up to the man at the northbound North Freeway feeder road, at which time the man argued with police officers and tried to flee across I-45. The man was able to make it across the northbound lanes of I-45 but when he tried to cross the southbound lanes he was hit by a Ford Expedition and possible two other vehicles. The fatal collision then caused the freeway to back up. As an 18-wheeler sat in the backed-up traffic, a 19-year old female driver failed to slow her car in time and struck the rear of the big rig. The driver died at the scene and her two rear seat passengers were taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital in critical condition: the front seat passenger was said to have sustained minor injuries. The victims have not been identified: police said the man who ran from them had no weapons and no identification on him.

The 19-year old woman driving this car was killed and her rear seat passengers severely injured in a rear-end collision with a big rig on I-45

Our sympathies go out to the friends and families of the occupants of the car.

KHOU Channel 11 News updated the story on the 18-wheeler accident in Fort Worth that left a car crushed and the cab of the 18-wheeler hanging off an overpass above the freeway below. Fort Worth police are saying that the driver of the car, who was pinned inside his crushed vehicle for about an hour after the accident, may face a gun charge and a DUI charge related to the accident. It took more than 3 hours to clear the accident scene and rescue the car driver, a passenger and the trucker. The accident happened just before 4:00AM. Firefighters were able to use a ladder truck to reach up to the 18-wheeler cab and then used an elaborate pulley system to extract the truck through the passenger side of the cab.

The Houston personal injury attorneys at Smith & Hassler aggressively represent clients injured in car accidents caused by intoxicated drivers. If you have been injured due to the negligence of a drunk driver, call Smith & Hassler for a free attorney consultation: don’t let an insurance adjuster talk you into settling for too little, too soon.

The driver of this badly crushed car may face a DUI charge for the accident with the 18-wheeler

Skilled work by Fort Worth firefighters allowed the rescue of the trapped driver of the big rig

Houston area commuters are facing delays this evening due to an overturned 18-wheeler on I-45 northbound at North Main. All of the main travel lanes are blocked by the wrecked big rig. While the 18-wheeler appears to be the only vehicle involved, the cause of the accident is not clear at this time. A fire truck and ambulance were called to the scene, but what injuries were involved (if any) is thus far not known.

Fox News’ coverage of the story is here.

Click2Houston.com’s story is here.

ABC Channel 13’s coverage is here

This accident between an 18 wheeler and car left the big rig cab hanging off an overpass

ABC Local News is reporting the dramatic accident pictured above between a car and an 18-wheeler that left 2 people trapped in the car and the truck trapped in his cab, dangling over an Interstate 20 overpass in Fort Worth. The rescue took place early in the morning of Thursday March 24th and the fire department used a ladder truck. An emergency responder was able to climb inside the wrecked cab of the 18-wheeler and assist the truck driver to safety: he was treated on scene for minor injuries. The condition of the occupants of the car was not reported. The cause of the collision is under investigation.

Smith & Hassler’s personal injury attorneys have represented hundreds of Texans injured in 18-wheeler accidents and have significant experience with the special issues in accidents involving commercial vehicles. If you or a family member have been seriously injured in an accident with an 18-wheeler, call 713 739 1250 or 1-800-WIN-WIN1 for a free consultation.

A Harris County Deputy Sheriff was rushed to Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center Hospital this morning after an 18-wheeler crash, according to the Houston Chronicle’s report.  The deputy was hurt when his patrol car rear-ended an 18-wheeler on North Sam Houston Parkway near Bush International airport at around 2:00AM. Officials said the deputy possibly sustained two broken legs in the collision. The crash caused authorities to have to shut down the westbound lanes of the beltway while the wreck was cleared. The Deputy was responding to an emergency call at the time of the wreck: the cause of the accident is currently under investigation and the name of the deputy has not been released. Fox News covered the story also. ABC Channel 13 has a more detailed story than the Chronicle: Channel 13 reports that the deputy was freed from his severely damaged cruiser by the Eastex Fire Department using the jaws of life. The story also quotes  S.G. Wolverton withe Sheriff’s Department as saying the deputy did not have time to react to the 18-wheeler in the roadway ahead before hitting it from behind. The Deputy was trapped in his vehicle for about an hour. Here is video footage of the incident from Channel 13’s web site:

This photo from Channel 13's web site shows severe damage to the patrol car

If you, like the Sheriff’s Deputy, have been seriously injured in an 18-wheeler accident, contact the experienced Houston personal injury attorneys at Smith & Hassler. Interstate trucking companies are required to carry a minimum of $750,000 in liability insurance according to the Federal Motor Carrier Regulations; some have to carry more depending on the type of cargo they transport. Insurance companies that write policies for big rigs act fast to protect their interests, so ideally you would have a well-qualified personal injury attorney working fast to protect YOUR interests too.

KHOU News Channel 11 reported on a collision between two big rigs near downtown Houston on Saturday March 5, 2011. It was not reported whether injuries were involved. The Channel 11 article attributed the accident to rain-slicked roads.

ABC Local News 13 is reporting that one person was injured last night when an 18-wheeler crashed into a car. The collision happened at the intersection of Westgreen and Park Row in West Harris County. Deputies say a car pulled out in front of the 18-wheeler at the intersection, and the 18-wheeler veered off the road and hit a chain link fence. Because the fuel tank ruptured on the big rig, a hazmat crew was called on to clean up the accident scene.

Fortunately it sounds like this incident did not result in serious injuries. Sadly serious injury, and sometimes death, are the result of 18-wheeler versus car accidents largely due to the size and weight difference between the vehicles. Being hit from behind at 50MPH by a vehicle similar in size and weight to the stopped vehicle is bad enough, so when the rear vehicle outweighs the stopped vehicle more than 10-to-1, the potential for injury is very high. The U.S. Department of Transportation establishes size and weight limits for trucks and trailers assembled in the U.S., the current weight limit is 80,000lbs but individual states have the right to issue temporary oversize or overweight permits. If you have been seriously injured in an 18-wheeler accident, contact the Houston personal injury lawyers at Smith & Hassler for a free consultation.