An 81 year old woman died December 5 on Route 222 in Lower Macungie Township in Pennsylvania when a tractor trailer failed to stop for traffic ahead, and hit pick up truck. Another car and three other vehicles also were struck in the chain reaction truck crash. 

The elderly woman’s name was Fay A. Parry from Upper Macungie Township, and she was pronounced dead at the scene. She was a passenger in one of the vehicles that was hit from behind.

The Pennsylvania State Police stated that their investigation focused on the tractor trailer driver who apparently failed to stop for traffic ahead on southbound Route 222. The big rig was driven by Gary M. Pellegrino, 65, from White Plains, New York.

Parry was seated in the rear of one of the vehicles that was hit from behind, although the police did not say which vehicle it was.

Our View

A tractor trailer that is carrying a full load can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. When a truck fails to stop for traffic ahead, the resulting collision is horiffic in many cases and usually leads to very serious injuries or death. Our Virginia and North Carolina truck accident attorneys want to remind all truck drivers that they have a duty to pay strict attention to the road when they are driving.

As our Virginia CDL manual states, the common causes of major tractor trailer accidents are driving too fast and not paying attention while driving. A commercial vehicle is much bigger and heavier than regular vehicles and take much longer to stop. And obviously, the force of the collision of a fully loaded tractor trailer is many times greater than a car that weighs 3000 or 4000 pounds.

Sadly, many rear end truck crashes result in death, and the family of the deceased is left with the devastating loss of a loved one – without warning. In such terrible wrongful death truck accidents, many families opt to sue the trucking company and driver so that they can at least recover compensation for their loss. These wrongful death lawsuits can net the family several million dollars in some case.