An April 29 tractor trailer crash in Kanawha County, West Virginia resulted in the death of the sleeping passenger, who was ejected out of the rig onto the roadway 30 feet below an overpass.

The West Virginia truck crash happened in Kanawha County, West Virginia near the Sharon toll booth on the West Virginia Turnpike at mile marker 83. The tractor trailer struck a guardrail and then smashed into a bridge. The teenaged passenger was asleep when the accident happened and was thrown from the rig. He landed on Cabin Creek Road below the Turnpike.

The police did not provide any statements regarding possible causes of the truck accident.

Our View

The tragic truck crash on the West Virginia Turnpike is yet another example of an accident that did not need to happen. While our Virginia tractor trailer personal injury attorneys do not know what might have caused this crash, distracted driving is a possibility.

Distracted driving is deadly in America, and even more so for tractor trailer drivers. When a trucker is hauling an 80,000 pound rig, paying strict attention to driving is mandatory. Tractor trailer drivers often drive when they are tired, play with cell phones, adjust the radio, or talk with passengers, and are not paying attention to driving. The result can be a fatal truck accident or a truck accident with serious personal injuries.

Truck drivers should know that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration or FMCSA prohibits texting and using mobile phones while operating a commercial vehicle that is used for interstate commerce. Drivers who are caught texting or using a cell phone while they are driving can be fined or be put of out service.

Research from the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute shows that commercial motor vehicle drivers who text while driving are 23 times more likely to be involved in a truck crash than those who do not. Also, truck drivers who dial mobile phones while driving are six times more likely to be in a truck accident resulting in personal injury or death.

The above study noted that truckers did not appear to text any more than regular car drivers, but the consequences of texting while driving a tractor trailer can be much more deadly.

Distracted driving in a tractor trailer is never worth it. It can lead to serious injury and death and possible jail time for the offender. Tractor trailer crashes resulting in death from distracted driving can also result in wrongful death lawsuits and multi-million dollar settlements.  We hope that this deadly truck crash will remind truckers to really be careful when they are on our roads.