November 15, 2009

Christian County Truck and Train Accident Leaves No One Injured

A trucking accident in Christian County that occurred on November 11th resulted in no injuries. According to My State Line, a truck driver claims to have not seen a train coming as we waited on the track for traffic to clear the road ahead, and it was too late to get off the track once he realized and the train drove through the trailer of the truck. Luckily, while there was a mess following the trucking accident no one was injured as a result of the accident. There were apparently no lights or arms at the intersection to warn of possible oncoming trains. For more information on this Taylorville trucking accident, click on this link.

June 19, 2009

No One Injured in Truck and Train Accident

A truck accident involving a log truck and a freight train occurred in the morning of June 18th. Luckily, no injuries have been reported at this point, but the highway was blocked for several hours following this truck accident. The reason for the long shutdown following the truck/train accident was because of the cleanup of the debris and spillage from the tankers. Nothing that spilled is reported to be toxic unless it catches on fire. For more information on this truck accident, click here.

May 8, 2009

Chicago Truck Accident Kills One Man on Dan Ryan

A 70-year-old man was killed in a Chicago truck accident in the early morning hours of May 8. According the Chicago Breaking News, two cars and one semi-truck were involved. A driver in a Ford Taurus lost control of his car and hit a retaining wall near 79th Street on Chicago’s South Side. The truck driver was able to slow down to avoid a collision but a minivan failed to come to a stop and slammed into the back of the semi, killing the van driver. The driver of the Taurus and the semi-truck did not suffer any personal injuries. The report did not reveal what caused the driver of the Taurus to initially lose control of his car. To read more about this Chicago truck accident.

March 15, 2009

Woman dead after train headed to Chicago collides with truck

An Amtrak train travelling from St. Louis to Chicago struck and killed a woman in her pickup truck in Hartford, Illinois recently. The 31-year-old train crash victim was pregnant with her second child, said the Coroner’s Office of Madison County, Illinois. Witnesses who saw the truck accident said that the train did not sound its horn and was not able to reach a complete stop until it was about one mile past the intersection. Witnesses were concerned that the train crossing had no signal lights or crossing signs and many had deemed it a hazard for years. Read more about this truck-train collision.

February 24, 2009

Man Injured in Accident Involving a Tractor-Trailer and Train

A man sustained serious injuries to his arm, chest, head and pelvis after being pinned beneath a large truck that was struck by a train. The man was trying to help move a tractor-trailer truck that was stuck on train tracks, but unfortunately the train struck the truck before the man could move.

Emergency workers freed the man, who was pinned under the tractor-trailer, after the train drug the truck for 30 feet. The man was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. Read about this truck accident by following the link.


January 16, 2009

Newest train derailment in a string of Chicago-area public transportation accidents

In the last week, Chicago trains have been involved in car crashes and other automobile accidents, pedestrian collisions, and derailments. This morning, a freight train with 72 cars headed from Canada to Chicago experienced a derailment in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. No injuries were caused by the derailment, but two cars were holding sulfur, a toxic, hazardous material. According to a spokesperson, the substance is currently not posing a danger. For the full story, click here.

January 12, 2009

Chicago Area Train Crash Creates Death Toll of One

A Chicago train line faced delays after a deadly train accident occurred near Gary, Indiana. The accident resulted in a car accident fatality where the driver of a car was alleged to have run into the train. There is no word yet on if a personal injury lawsuit will be filed by train passengers or if defective railroad gates are to blame. The car train accident has left the automobile driver dead but there were no injured train passengers. To read more about this story click here.

January 5, 2009

Lawsuit alleges engineer was using cell phone during rail crash

More than a dozen persons who received personal injuries in a deadly commuter rail crash accuse the engineer's employer of ignoring complaints that he regularly used his cell phone while operating trains. A personal injury lawsuit was recently filed on behalf of 23 plaintiffs, including passengers who were injured or killed on the train.

For the full article.

December 10, 2008

Last minute regulations make railroads immune from state personal injury lawsuits

Railroad companies will soon be immune from state personal injury lawsuits thanks to a late filed regulation that the Transportation Safety Administration adopted recently. Like in other premises, the Bush Administration states that state personal injury lawsuits and other tort lawsuits are impliedly pre-empted by federal law. But, the American Association for Justice disagrees and says that Congress in a 2007 measure related to a train accident expressed that it did not intend to pre-empt state personal injury claims.

For the full article.

December 9, 2008

Commuter rail system has higher fatalities than most

A recent analysis has found that one commuter rail system has a higher fatality rate than most larger systems throughout the country. The Metrolink commuter system was responsible for almost two-thirds of the nation’s passenger wrongful deaths in train accidents over the past six years.

For the full article.

April 30, 2008

Chicago Truck Crash into CTA Red Line: Suspect Prescription Drugs in Trucker's Possession

According to the Chicago Police Department, the truck driver whose semi truck crashed into the CTA Red Line station on Cermak last week possessed prescription drugs that were not prescribed to him. While in custody, the driver refused a urine test, a method police often use to detect controlled substances, and behaved oddly, leading some to suspect that he may have been under the influence of drugs when the truck crashed. Currently, Chicago lawyers have filed personal injury lawsuits in Chicago against the driver and have named the trucking company, Whiteline Express, in the truck accident lawsuit. Chicago Police plan to interview other semi truck drivers to determine if it is common for semi truck drivers to use controlled substances at work.

Please read more here.

April 29, 2008

Probe into Red Line Truck Crash Continues; Police Look to Driver

The investigation into the horrific semi truck accident at the CTA’s Cermak red line stop last week continues. Currently, the Chicago Police Department is investigating the truck crash to determine if any foul pay was afoot, if the driver’s fatigue or substance use may have caused the crash, or if mechanical error caused the truck to crash. As of today, the Chicago Police Department has only given the driver a negligent driving ticket; this may mean that negligent driving caused a truck accident.

Read more here.