Illinois Truck Accident Lawyer Blog

On Friday we reported on a tragic truck accident that ultimately killed three members of a Humboldt Park family.

According to reports the family was traveling in their SUV in the early morning, at 3:30am on an unlit portion of Interstate 65. Unexpectedly, their vehicle was hit from behind by a FedEx tractor trailer. That impact caused the SUV to spin out of control. It eventually flipped over—five passengers were ejected from the vehicle during the crash.

When emergency medical crews arrived, three people were pronounced dead at the scene. They included a 26-year old newlywed, and two sisters, one 9 years old and the other 11. The young girls are described as smart students who had plans to become nurses. Four others were injured in the truck accident, including two other children ages 5 and 2.

Now, WLKY News reports that the catastrophe is sparking calls to improve the highway where the trucking accident occurred. Specifically, some advocates are calling for an expansion of Interstate 65. There is currently a 45 mile long stretch of the highway that is only four lanes. Many are pushing efforts to widen the highway to six lanes.

A wider highway with more area for cars to travel is cited as necessary to ease the congestion in that stretch of roadway. In that way, it is hoped there would be less risk of vehicles bumping into one another and causing deadly accidents.

Continue reading " Car Accident That Killed Three Spurs Calls for Highway Safety Improvements " »

WGN TV News reported earlier this week on a tragic trucking accident in Kentucky involving a Chicago family.

The truck crash occurred near Elizabethtown, Kentucky on Interstate 65 on Wednesday. The Humboldt Park family was driving back home after attending a wedding in Florida. There were six passengers in the Nissan Pathfinder when the accident occurred.

According to reports the family was traveling in their SUV in the early morning, at 3:30am on an unlit portion of the highway. Unexpectedly their vehicle was hit from behind by a FedEx tractor trailer. That impact caused the SUV to spin out of control. It eventually flipped over—five passengers were ejected from the vehicle during the crash.

When emergency medical crews arrived, three people were pronounced dead at the scene. They included a 26-year old newlywed, and two sisters, one 9 years old and the other 11. The grandmother of the victims explained that the very close family remains in shock. The young girls are described as smart students who had plans to become nurses. Four others were injured in the truck accident, including two other children ages 5 and 2.

No information was currently available on the reasons for the trucking mistake. The truck driver may have taken his eyes off the road, his machine may have malfunctioned, or a number of other causes could have factored into the rear-end collision.

Continue reading " Three Members of Chicago Family Killed in Truck Accident " »

A truck crash yesterday morning on Interstate 80 shut down the highway and sent several passengers to the hospital.

The Star Courier reported on the Illinois truck accident noting that the crash occurred shortly before 6 am on Tuesday. A box truck was traveling eastbound on the interstate when a silver Toyota car slid on the ice. The car collided with the back of the box truck. Both vehicles became disabled in the middle of the roadway after that collision.

After that first impact, a large tanker truck semi came upon the wreckage. The semi driver failed to notice the accident site in time. As a result, the tanker slammed into the disabled vehicles, causing further damage.

Emergency crews rushed to the scene. Substantial effort was needed to extricate two people from the Toyota and two from the semi. The driver of the car was sent to a local hospital where she remains in critical condition. The 13-year old car passenger and those in the semi received some injuries, but none of them were life threatening.

Continue reading " Illinois Truck Crash Temporarily Shuts Down I-80 " »

The Chicago Tribune reported yesterday on a deadly truck accident involving a pick-up and an Illinois school bus. According to authorities, two tires that were on the back of the school bus became dislodged while the bus was traveling on the highway. The tires then flew directly into oncoming traffic.

One of the tires eventually smashed into a pick-up truck driven by a 23-year old man. The young male driver suffered severe head injuries as a result of the tire collision. Emergency officials rushed to the accident site, but there was little that they could do to save the man. He ultimately died as a result of the truck crash.

The Chicago-area school bus was later reported to be transporting college students back from a ski trip. Fortunately, none of the passengers on the bus were injured in the accident.

As of now there is no word on the specific malfunction that caused the tires to become dangerous projectiles on the highway. Obviously if proper safety protocols are followed than incidents like these should be avoided. It is important for authorities to understand the cause of this accident to share with the victim’s family members. They deserve the right to learn the truth about the wreck and to seek redress for their losses if negligence is discovered.

Continue reading " Chicago-Area Accident Involving School Bus Kills Man " »

ABC News Chicago reported late this week on a truck accident involving a pizza delivery car and a fire engine. The unique collision sent one man to the hospital.

According to current reports, the Chicago truck crash occurred on the city’s southwest side just after 11 am on Thursday. A fire engine was speeding toward a fire on South Parnell Street. When the engine was at the intersection of Marquette and King Drive, the truck was broadsided by a pizza delivery car. After a brief delay, the firefighters continued to the fire. The driver of the care received injuries, but he is expected to fully recover.

It is unclear what led to the unique collision. The Chicago Fire Department has yet to release any information about the circumstances that may have caused the crash. Most importantly, it is unclear if the car driver was driving into a green light or if the emergency lights on the fire engine were properly activated.

Continue reading " One Injured in Chicago Truck Accident Involving Fire Engine " »

Another truck crash struck yesterday according to reports by the Tribune Local. The accident occurred at the intersection of Routes 41 and 21 in suburban Gurnee.

According to police reports, a 19-year old male driver was traveling in a Cadillac as he came upon the intersection. For reasons yet unknown, the driver failed to stop at the red light in front of him. As a result his car barreled dangerously through the intersection, hitting a large semi-tractor trailer that was traveling through it.

The Cadillac became wedged into the semi. It took rescue crews almost a half an hour to extricate the injured car driver from his vehicle. The man suffered a broken leg, but is fortunate not to have any life-threatening injuries. The Chicago truck driver was not injured in the accident.

The semi involved in this Illinois truck crash was carrying lithium at the time of the incident. In another stroke of luck, the hazardous material was not exposed in any way that posed a risk of contamination.

Continue reading " Man Extricated Following Illinois Trucking Crash " »

The Chicago Sun-Times reported yesterday on a semi accident that struck early Monday morning.

Shortly before 3 a.m. a young driver in his early 20s was on the eastbound side of the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290). His old Buick was near Chicago Park Avenue when the man lost control of the car. A semi truck was heading in the same direction of the highway nearby. When the driver lost control the car veered into the semi and became lodged underneath it. The car was dragged more than 200 feet before it broke away from the large truck.

Emergency crews were rushed to the scene of the Chicago truck accident. The driver of the car had to be extricated from smashed vehicle. Amazingly he only suffered a few cuts and scrapes.

Following the rescue the man was found to have been intoxicated, with a blood alcohol level well over the legal limit. He was subsequently cited by the police officers for driving under the influence and failure to reduce speed.

Continue reading " Drunk Driver Causes Chicago Truck Crash on Eisenhower " »

An Illinois woman was killed last week after a tragic truck accident involving a semi and an SUV.

The Daily Republican Register reported on the Illinois truck crash last Tuesday. The 69-year old victim was driving on Illinois Route 161 Extension about 1 mile west of Illinois Route 130. While the victim was driving, she came upon a semi-trailer that was attempting to back into a private driveway. The semi was blocking both lanes of traffic as it attempted the maneuver.

The female driver did not realize the truck was taking up both lanes of traffic. As a result, she drove the SUV into the side of the semi’s trailer. The impact caused intense damage. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

The truck driver who blocked both lanes of traffic was cited for Improper Backing. The trucker’s maneuvering was both illegal and fatal. As occurred in this case, failure of truckers to abide by common sense traffic laws often have deadly consequences for the innocent victims .

Continue reading " Negligent Trucker Causes Deadly Illinois Truck Crash " »

The Courier Press reported this weekend on the death of a driver following a truck accident on Interstate 64 in southern Illinois. The man was killed in rural Wayne County after his vehicle ran off the road, stopping when the wheels became stuck in the mud.

The Illinois truck crash occurred around 2:30 in the afternoon on Wednesday, near the 98th mile marker in Western Wayne County.

Initial reports indicate the man’s death was likely caused by a heart attack that he suffered while behind the wheel. Apparently witnesses report that the semi began slowing down and then ran off the road.

Continue reading " Driver Killed in Southern Illinois Truck Accident " »

The Chicago Tribune published a story last week on the tragic death of a Chicago man following a truck crash involving a city-owned vehicle.

Early last week the 44-year old victim was walking across the street on the 2800 block of South Archer Avenue in the Bridgeport neighborhood. The sun was still out, as it was still afternoon, only 3 p.m. A city-owned truck was maneuvering nearby. The vehicle began going in reverse and moving into the path of the walking pedestrian. Neither the man nor the truck driver saw the danger developing.

The truck ultimately hit the pedestrian. Authorities quickly arrived on the scene, but the victim was pronounced dead a few hours later. An investigatory unit is still working on piecing together the details of the Chicago truck crash to determine exactly what happened.

The collision of a pedestrian with large trucks almost always has deadly consequences. That is particularly true when the large truck is traveling at high speeds or the pedestrian is unable to deflect any of the impact. Our Chicago truck accident attorneys at Levin & Perconti have helped families for decades who have suffered following these devastating road accidents.

Continue reading " Chicago Truck Crash Kills Man in Bridgeport " »

KMOV News is reported on a breaking story this morning that has closed down a major Illinois highway. According to initial reports, a truck crash struck around 6:30 a.m. this morning on Illinois 64 in Fairview Heights at the Highway 159 intersection.

The developing nature of the Illinois truck accident means that the current information on the incident is scattered. What is known is that emergency crews and a medical helicopter were rushed to the area this morning following the serious collision. The victims were rushed to nearby hospitals where there status remains unclear.

Police explained that the two-vehicle accident included one car and a semi-truck. It is unclear if the collision was weather-related or if some other factor was at play, including slow zone build up caused by rush hour traffic.

The wreck has shut down parts of the highway as authorities work to clean up the area. Of concern is the risk presented by traffic build up during clean-up. Many ancillary accidents often occurred in these areas.

Continue reading " Illinois Truck Accident Closes Down I-64 " »

A Good Samaritan is being credited with saving a family from serious injury following a Chicago-area truck accident.

According to The Reporter Online, the accident struck last Friday shortly before 8 a.m. A woman was driving with her two small children east on 111th Street. At the same time a large delivery truck was eastbound on Natchez Avenue. At the intersection of the two roads, the negligent truck driver failed to reduce his speed, leading to a collision with the family’s car. The impact slammed the car into a nearby curb and flipped it over onto its roof.

Fortunately, a local bystander was nearby and heard the sound of the collision. Upon running toward to scene, he saw one of the children, a 5 year old boy, crying near the overturned vehicle. The mother and 14-month old child were still trapped inside. The Good Samaritan quickly rushed to help the young child, who was hanging upside down in the car seat. He squeezed half of his body through the back window and freed the child’s seat, brining him to safety.

Emergency crews soon arrived and were able to free the mother and bring both children to the hospital for emergency care. The authorities eventually ticketed the Chicago truck driver for his negligent conduct causing the accident.

Continue reading " Bystander Saves Child in Chicago Truck Crash " »

A deadly Chicago truck crash struck in the midst of this week’s blizzard, reports ABC Local News.

The truck accident occurred Wednesday, near the lake in the 2800 block of South Archer Avenue. According to reports, the victim was a 60-year old man who was walking along the lakefront in the middle of the storm. Visibility was obviously curtailed with the near white-out conditions of the blizzard. It is unclear whether the man’s vehicle was stalled and he was walking to seek warmth or for some other reason.

While the victim was walking along the lakefront, a City of Chicago Department of Transportation truck came barreling down upon him while in reverse. The truck struck the man, sending his injured body into Diversy Harbor. It was only hours later that authorities were able to pull the man’s body from the frigid, snowy, turbulent lake. He died from his injuries.

City of Chicago police officers have cited the truck driver for operating the vehicle in reverse and not exercising the required care for a pedestrian. Investigations into the accident are on-going.

Continue reading " City of Chicago Transportation Truck Kills Pedestrian " »

Safety BLR reported yesterday on an upcoming listening session related to trucking safety sponsored by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

The topic of discussion is new proposals by the administration related to “hours of service” regulations for commercial truckers. All those interested in preventing Illinois truck crashes should be aware of these regulations. They are mandates incumbent upon all trucking companies to ensure that their drivers get adequate rest before getting behind the wheels of these big rigs. Considering that driver fatigue and lack of sleep are one of the main causes of deadly truck collisions, these rules are of paramount importance to improving road safety.

The administration is seeking public comment on the latest changes. Anyone in the Washington D.C. area can attend the session in person at the Crowne Plaza Washington National Airport, or those in Illinois can listen online at the agency’s main webpage.

The latest changes include a variety of alterations to existing rules. For example, drivers would be required to have more consecutive “off duty” periods while not driving each week. The administration officials are hoping to gather a wide range of commentary on the changes with the overarching goal of preventing truck accidents with on-duty restrictions and resting requirements.

Continue reading " Listening Session On Rule Changes Related to Trucking Safety " »