Distracted driving caused two 18 wheelers to collide early this morning in Shreveport.
Steven Everitt, 53, of Fort Worth was hauling empty water bottles when he was rear-ended by another 18-wheeler. The driver, whose name has yet to be released, had to be cut from the wreckage and was pronounced dead at the scene.
This tragic wreck happened while the police were clearing the scene of another crash in the opposite direction around midnight, so it is safe to say that “rubbernecking” was the cause.
I know that it is human nature to look at an accident as you drive by. But commercial truck drivers, of all people, cannot take their eyes off the road like that. This causes a domino effect and violates many provisions in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations, considered “the Bible” in litigating these truck collision cases, and the Texas Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver Handbook.
Since this is the last day of National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, I am taking this final opportunity to discuss the dangers of this dangerous problem.
Consider the following statistics from 2011 regarding distracted driving crashes:
3,331 people were killed;
387,000 people were injured;
31% of drivers said they read or sent textsor emails while driving;
400% greater chance of being in a crash when talking on a cellular device;
23 times greater chance of being in crash when texting.
As a member of the Interstate Trucking Litigation Group of the American Association For Justice and other legal organizations, I have made a commitment to do whatever I can to help remove this deadly practice of distracted driving.
If you know someone who was injured or died in a Texas trucking accident, please email us online or give us a call at 817-885-8000 or toll-free at 1-888-801-8585. We have successfully represented injured Texans for over 33 years and will fight to get your the money your deserve.