Bus Accident Law Blog

Nineteen soldiers were injured when a National Guard bus overturned in Florida Tuesday, the First Coast News reported. http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/mostpopular/news-article.aspx?storyid=151488&provider=top

The accident took place in Clay County on state Road 21 not far from Gold Head Branch State Park, north of Keystone Heights.

The passengers on the bus were 30 soldiers from the 690th Military Police Company of Crystal River, Fla. The unit, which is based near Tampa, was moving in a convoy of four buses not far from Camp Blanding. One of the buses slowed down, and the bus behind it swerved and then overturned, injuring the armed military inside of it.

The soldiers who needed treatment were taken to Shands Gainesville, Shands Medical Clinic in Stark and Orange Park Medical Center.

The rest of the soldiers were required to go to Camp Blanding for counseling, which is mandatory when a Florida National Guard solider is involved in an accident or a traumatic event.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
http://subtlebraininjury.com
http://car-accident-rain.com
http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com
http://vestibulardisorder.com
http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney
g@gordonjohnson.com
800-992-9447

Labels: Arkansas bus accident, brain injury, brain injury attorney, bus accident and brain injury, Soldies injured in bus accident

South Carolina is considering a bill that bans school bus drivers from texting while they’re behind the wheel. http://news.sc/2010/02/03/texting-ban-planned-for-south-carolina-school-bus-drivers/

The question must be asked: how could such a measure fail to pass? If there is any place that texting would violate all concepts of safety and public policy, it would have to be while driving school children in a bus.

Under the proposed legislation, school bus drivers would face up to a $100 fine if they were caught violating the texting prohibition.

If it passes the ban, South Carolina would be an addition to the 19 states and Washington, D.C., who have already barred texting while driving.

There has been considerable research on whether texting bans really lead to less accidents. A recent study by the Highway Loss Data Institute found the restrictions have no impact, while research by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute said that texting drivers are 23 times more at risk to have an accident or almost have an accident than those who are not distracted. Add a touch screen phone like the Iphone to that equation and the risk of a catastrophe has to grow exponentially.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
http://subtlebraininjury.com
http://car-accident-rain.com
http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com
http://vestibulardisorder.com
http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney
g@gordonjohnson.com
800-992-9447

Labels: brain injury, brain injury attorney, South Carolina School Bus Driver Texting Ban, texting crash, texting while driving

A man driving a pickup truck was killed Wednesday in a head-on crash with a school bus in the East Saint Louis area of Illinois.

The accident took place as snowy weather made roads slick. The man driving the truck, who wasn’t identified, was driving west on Douglas Road and crashed near Kraft Road, according to the Belleville News-Democrat of Belleville, Ill. For the full story, see http://www.bnd.com/179/story/1107676.html?storylink=omni_popular

There were no children on the bus. The bus driver was hurt and was brought to a local hospital for treatment.

St. Clair County sheriff’s officers blamed the accident on the driver going to fast and the inclement weather.

In any case involving a skidding accident, such as this one, an investigation should be made as to whether the tires of the vehicle which lost control, were improperly placed or rotated. If the vehicle had two new or newer tires on the front, instead of the back, then this would likely cause severe inability to control the vehicle after hydroplaning begins. The tires with the greater tread need to go on the back, not the front. See http://fishtail.tv

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
http://subtlebraininjury.com
http://car-accident-rain.com
http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com
http://vestibulardisorder.com
http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney
g@gordonjohnson.com
800-992-9447

Labels: Arkansas bus accident, brain injury, brain injury attorney, bus accident and brain injury, hydroplaning accident, skidding accident

The power of a train, the tragedy of young people killed, now all on video. It is ironic how much of our law regarding the automobile and safety revolve around trains and teen age driver wrecks. Today, we can pause and remember and say a prayer for safety.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
http://fishtail.tv
http://tbilaw.com

Date: 7/10/2009 2:32 PM


DAVID RUNK,Associated Press Writer


DETROIT (AP) — The car carrying five young people never slows as it approaches a rail crossing near Detroit, and drives right past a car that had been stopped there for several seconds — just before an Amtrak train rushes through the crossing.

Police released a copy of a surveillance video Friday that captured the crash a day earlier, in which the five people were killed after skirting the railroad gate about 20 miles west of Detroit. At the wheel, according to police and state records, was a 19-year-old man with a suspended license.

"There is no indication alcohol or anything else was involved other than bad judgment," Canton Township police spokesman Sgt. Mark Gajeski said.

Dan Broughton of Woodhaven, a Detroit suburb, was driving, Gajeski said. State records show he had a number of traffic violations, including speeding and disobeying a stop sign in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park on Jan. 7. His failure to show a driver's license April 1 in Woodhaven led a judge to suspend his license for one month — a suspension that began Wednesday.

Friends and family at Broughton's home declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter on Friday.

Authorities released more information Friday on the victims and audio from a 911 report of the crash. Gajeski said he expected that the medical examiner's office would run toxicology tests, which could take weeks, but police said there was no indication drugs played a factor.

Investigators said the crossing had a gate and flashing lights that were working when the car approached. Police said the train, which was carrying about 170 people, typically travels about 67 miles per hour at the site of the crash. It broadsided the black Ford Fusion and pushed it about a mile down the tracks.

Police said the train was traveling within the allowed speed limit.

"There is no one to be charged," Gajeski said. "From witness statements and the video, the person just ran the gate."

A day after the crash, memorials including a bouquet of white carnations were left at the crossing.

Canton Township police said the others killed were Sean Harris and Eddie Gross of Taylor and Terrence Harris of Stafford, Va. Family members say Sean was 19 and also lived in Detroit; Terrence was 21; and Gross was 17. The mother of 14-year-old Jessica Sadler said Thursday the girl was among those killed.

No one aboard the train was injured, Amtrak said.

Last year, 119 people died nationwide in Amtrak accidents, usually when trains struck vehicles or pedestrians at railroad crossings, according to figures from the Federal Railroad Administration. Eleven people died in train accidents of all types in Michigan in 2008, according to Federal Railroad Administration data.

___

Associated Press Writers David N. Goodman in Woodhaven, Ben Leubsdorf in Canton Township, Corey Williams in Detroit and David Eggert in Lansing contributed to this report.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Summary
Date: 7/10/2009 2:32 PM
Slug: BC-US--Train Hits Car,7th Ld-Writethru
Headline: Video: Car doesn't slow before Mich. rail crossing
Source:
Byline: DAVID RUNK,Associated Press Writer
Copyright Holder: AP
Priority: r (4)
With Photo:
Dateline: DETROIT
Lead
Editors' Note: Eds: UPDATES with police releasing additional information about victims, detail of memorial at scene of crash.
Word Count: 503
File Name (Transref): L0892
Editorial Type: Lead
AP Category: a
Format: bx





Edit Mode : Cancel


DETROIT (AP) — The car carrying five young people never slows as it approaches a rail crossing near Detroit, and drives right past a car that had been stopped there for several seconds — just before an Amtrak train rushes through the crossing. Police released a copy of a surveillance video Friday that captured the crash a day earlier, in which the five people were killed after skirting the railroad gate about 20 miles west of Detroit. At the wheel, according to police and state records, was a 19-year-old man with a suspended license. "There is no indication alcohol or anything else was involved other than bad judgment," Canton Township police spokesman Sgt. Mark Gajeski said. Dan Broughton of Woodhaven, a Detroit suburb, was driving, Gajeski said. State records show he had a number of traffic violations, including speeding and disobeying a stop sign in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park on Jan. 7. His failure to show a driver's license April 1 in Woodhaven led a judge to suspend his license for one month — a suspension that began Wednesday. Friends and family at Broughton's home declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter on Friday. Authorities released more information Friday on the victims and audio from a 911 report of the crash. Gajeski said he expected that the medical examiner's office would run toxicology tests, which could take weeks, but police said there was no indication drugs played a factor. Investigators said the crossing had a gate and flashing lights that were working when the car approached. Police said the train, which was carrying about 170 people, typically travels about 67 miles per hour at the site of the crash. It broadsided the black Ford Fusion and pushed it about a mile down the tracks. Police said the train was traveling within the allowed speed limit. "There is no one to be charged," Gajeski said. "From witness statements and the video, the person just ran the gate." A day after the crash, memorials including a bouquet of white carnations were left at the crossing. Canton Township police said the others killed were Sean Harris and Eddie Gross of Taylor and Terrence Harris of Stafford, Va. Family members say Sean was 19 and also lived in Detroit; Terrence was 21; and Gross was 17. The mother of 14-year-old Jessica Sadler said Thursday the girl was among those killed. No one aboard the train was injured, Amtrak said. Last year, 119 people died nationwide in Amtrak accidents, usually when trains struck vehicles or pedestrians at railroad crossings, according to figures from the Federal Railroad Administration. Eleven people died in train accidents of all types in Michigan in 2008, according to Federal Railroad Administration data. ___ Associated Press Writers David N. Goodman in Woodhaven, Ben Leubsdorf in Canton Township, Corey Williams in Detroit and David Eggert in Lansing contributed to this report.

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Labels: brain injury, bus accident, bus accident lawyer, Michigan car train wreck, Michigan rail crossing

You would probably have to search for a very long time to find anyone who would not agree that the most precious commodity transported on the nation’s highways are our children. They are among our most vulnerable passengers. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children from 2 to 14 years old.

What is more disturbing is the number of school bus crashes which occur in the United States.

safeguard4kids, proponents of seat belts for school buses, lists these NHTSA statistics:

Since different organisations have their own ways of reporting, tracking and calculating school bus accidents and injuries, it is difficult to know how many children are actually injured in school bus accidents. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that school bus crash data is incomplete and that injuries cannot be reliably estimated.1 We do know, however, that lap-shoulder belts can make a significant impact on injury reduction.

* According to the April 2002 NHTSA Report to Congress, every day there are over 144 school bus accidents (26,000 per year) in America and more than 9,500 children are injured in school bus accidents each year.
* According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), there were an estimated 51,100 school bus-related injuries treated in U.S. emergency departments from 2001 to 2003, which averages to approximately 17,000 children injured in school bus accidents each year. This is the first study to describe nonfatal school bus–related injuries to U.S. children and teenagers treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments using a national sample. This study identified a much greater annual number of school bus–related injuries to children than reported previously.
* Data from the General Estimates System2 indicates that 13,000 people are injured annually in school bus crashes. Of those injured, 46 percent (5,980) were school bus occupants, 8 percent were school bus drivers, 38 percent were occupants of other vehicles, and fewer than 0.05 percent each were pedestrians, pedal cyclists and non-motorists.

Additionally:

According to 2005 data from NHTSA, an average of 21 school age children die in school transportation-related traffic crashes each year. Six of those deaths occur in school transportation vehicles. This number applies only to daily school routes and does not account for extracurricular activities that take place outside of normal school hours.

When I began posting headlines related to school bus incidents and accidents, I went very quickly from concern to shock at the number of school bus accidents occurring every day in this country. I have read follow up stories of drunk driving arrests among bus drivers and wondered why such stories do not elicit the sort of nationwide outrage that other media stories do. Not only are children the most precious cargo on the road, shouldn’t we trust those responsible for their safety to be beyond reproach character-wise?

What baffles me as well is reading over and over of school-buses being rear-ended by drivers who do not seem to pay much heed to those flashing lights or FREQUENT STOPS warnings, not to mention that a school bus should raise within in all of us a heightened sense of caution and care. I cannot even deliver an analogy as I can not imagine anything more fragile and valuable than our children.

There are plenty of stories of pickups and SUVs colliding with school buses in icy weather. Living in the midwest, I have myself observed the invincible driving attitudes of some of these drivers when road conditions are dangerous. They may think they can tackle an arctic storm without slowing down, but headlines say otherwise.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but it is a fact of life that certain times on week days, we can expect that school buses are out on the road. Before we get behind the wheel of our cars and stick the keys in the ignition, we should take a moment to confirm in our minds that there is precious cargo out on those roads and it is the responsibility of each and everyone of us to make sure that cargo is safely delivered to its destination.

Again and again, seat belt regulations for school buses fall through the cracks in state legislation. That means that the burden of the responsibility lies on the shoulders of all of us.

thelegaltimes.net staff article ©2009

Labels: bus accident attorney, bus accident lawyer, bus accidents, bus crash, bus crash fatalities, bus deaths, school bus crash, school bus safety

Date: 3/17/2009 4:23 PM

By OSCAR VILLALBA
Associated Press Writer

PIEDRAS NEGRAS, Mexico (AP) — A tractor-trailer slammed into a bus carrying Canadian and U.S. tourists on a northern Mexico highway, killing 11, officials said Tuesday.

Local officials said eight Americans are among the dead, and the U.S. Embassy has confirmed the identities of four, spokeswoman Liz Detter said. The Embassy could not release their names because next of kin had not been notified.

"Our heartfelt condolences go out to all those killed and injured in this tragedy," Detter said.

Alberto de la Rosa Vizcaino, Civil Protection director in the city of Saltillo, said three Canadians were killed in Monday's crash.

Canadian foreign affairs spokesman Alain Cacchione said Canadians were involved in the crash but he declined to provide further details for privacy reasons.

One of those killed was Ana Maria Bujanos, a middle-school reading teacher from Brownsville, Texas.

Her husband, Chris Bujanos, said a friend told him Tuesday morning after hearing his wife named as one of the victims on the radio, and a U.S. consulate representative called him to confirm her death.

"Tomorrow would have been our 33rd wedding anniversary, that's why I'm taking it so hard," Bujanos said.

Ana Maria Bujanos, 56, who taught at Cummings Middle School in Brownsville, was traveling to Zacatecas with another teacher from Harlingen during their spring break.

She had taken similar trips for years, her husband said. The bus picked them up in Harlingen on Monday morning and was scheduled to return Thursday evening, he said.

Coahuila state police commander Armando Santana said 11 people were killed in the crash and 15 injured. The injured were taken to three hospitals in Coahuila.

Santana said the bus was carrying retirees from McAllen, Texas, to the northern state of Zacatecas. Detter said 19 Americans were on board.

The truck driver apparently lost control and swerved into the bus's lane on a highway outside Saltillo, Santana said. He said the bus driver was killed and the truck driver was among the injured.

Duane DeBruyne, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, said his agency is supporting an investigation.

"The Mexican state and local police will be the lead authorities," DeBruyne said.

____

Associated Press writers Christopher Sherman in McAllen, Texas, and Alexandra Olson in Mexico City contributed to this report.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.

Labels: Arkansas bus accident, bus accidents, bus crash, bus crash fatalities, bus deaths, bus fatalities, Mexican bus crash, Mexican bus deaths

Date: 2/25/2009

MIDDLE ISLAND, N.Y. (AP) — Police in New York say 17 students and their driver were taken to hospitals after a school bus collided with a truck on Long Island. None of the injuries is considered serious.

The wreck occurred around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in Middle Island. The bus was from the Longwood School District. School district officials and the bus company haven't returned phone calls seeking comment.

Police say the students were involved in an after-school activity, but they are unsure what it was. The victims' names have not been released.

The front end of the truck was badly damaged, and many of the bus' windows were smashed. The truck driver also has been hospitalized.

A police officer was hit by a car while directing traffic surrounding the accident, suffering a serious but not life-threatening back injury. The car's driver was not charged with any crime.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.

Labels: bus accident, bus accident and brain injury, bus accident attorney, bus accident lawyer, bus accidents, bus crash, school bus crash, school bus safety