Valparaiso Police shut down the intersection while crews worked to clear the wreckage of the vehicles and officials reconstructed the truck accident.

At around 11:30 a.m. Friday morning, 79 year old Adele Nielson of Grovertown, IN was in her gold-colored passenger car, driving east on Vale Park Road. At the intersection with Indiana 49 the traffic light for her lane turned red and she came to a stop. At the same time a semi trailer truck was traveling south on Indiana 49. The identity of the truck driver is unknown.

A few seconds later the 18 wheeler suddenly slammed into the smaller vehicle and pushed it about 150 yards down the southbound lanes of Indiana 49
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According to the Valparaiso Police, no one is sure exactly what happened next. Elizabeth Young of Valparaiso, a witness who was also stopped at the intersection, was looking down adjusting her radio when she heard a loud noise. The witness looked up to see the semi trailer truck shoving the car down the highway. The car appeared to be stuck to the trailer truck as it was dragged down the road.

After dragging the car, the semi truck finally came to a rest on top of the roof of the smaller vehicle.

The witness, Ms. Young, said that she rushed to the car, which was filled with smoke, and found Ms. Nielsen unconscious at the wheel. Ms. Young was unable to find a pulse. There were no passengers in the car.

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Valparaiso emergency personnel were quickly at the scene and found the roof of Ms. Nielsen’s car almost completely crushed in where the cab of the trailer truck had come to a rest.

EMTs attempted to give aid, but found that Ms. Nielsen had suffered fatal injuries in the truck accident. She was pronounced dead at the scene according to the Porter County Coroner Robert Schulte.

It is not known if the truck driver was injured in the collision.

Valparaiso Police shut down the intersection while crews worked to clear the wreckage of the vehicles and officials reconstructed the truck accident. Local vehicles were rerouted around the intersection and the closure backed up traffic and caused delays on the southbound lanes of Indiana 49.

The intersection of Vale Park Road and Indiana 49 has been the site for numerous accidents and is considered one of the most dangerous intersections in Indiana. Friday’s truck accident was the fourth fatal accident in the last four years. The Indiana Department of Transportation is planning to remake Vale Park Road as an overpass, going over the Indiana 49 highway. The road construction is expected to start in 2011.

At this time no charges have been brought and the truck accident remains under investigation.

After rear-ending the flat bed trailer, the FedEx truck jackknifed across both lanes of the interstate and burst into flames. The flatbed semi was carrying three cars on its trailer at the time.

At around 7:45 p.m. 34 year old Andy Bowers of Walkerton, IN was driving a FedEx truck westbound on Interstate 80/90, also known as the East-West Indiana Toll Road, in La Porte County, IN. As Mr. Bowers was crossing a bridge on the interstate near mile marker 57 one of the tires on the FedEx truck blew out and he lost control of the rig.

The FedEx truck crashed into the back section of a westbound semi flatbed truck driven by 49 year old Nelson Ruiz-Santiago of Riverview, Florida. The flatbed semi was carrying three cars on its trailer at the time. After rear-ending the flat bed trailer, the FedEx truck jackknifed across both lanes of the interstate and burst into flames.

The truck accident caused the three cars on the flatbed to fall off the trailer. The crash threw debris into the air with some pieces of the wreckage landing in both the westbound and eastbound lanes of the interstate. The collision also damaged a utility line, but it was not known if any residents in the vicinity of the crash site lost power.

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Indiana State Patrol and local emergency personnel rushed to the site of the two truck accident. The FedEx driver, Mr. Bowers, suffered third degree burns to his face and right arm and may also have broke an arm during the collision. He was stabilized at the scene of the truck collision and then medically airlifted to Memorial Hospital in South Bend, IN, about 35 miles away. According to a hospital spokesperson the truck driver was treated and later released.

The driver of the flat bed trailer semi may have sustained back injuries and was also taken to Memorial Hospital.

The eastbound lanes of I-80/90 were closed for several hours while highway crews cleared debris from the traffic lanes. The eastbound lanes would reopen at around 10:00 p.m. Friday night. The westbound lanes would remain closed for several more hours while crews cleaned the crash scene and Indiana State Police officers investigated the truck accident. The westbound lanes of the interstate finally opened back up early Saturday morning.

At this time no charges have been made and the truck accident is under investigation.

The FedEx truck first hit the trooper’s vehicle, and then the cruiser plowed into the minivan, hitting Trooper Alexander and throwing him about 70 feet over the highway guardrail.

On Thursday morning Trooper Tommy Alexander was working on the Ohio Turnpike during the morning commute. Trooper Alexander is 41 years old from Springfield Township and has been with the Ohio Highway Patrol since 1993.

At about 8:30 a.m. Trooper Alexander had pulled over a minivan for a traffic violation and was talking to the driver, 44 year old Carol Thomas of Toledo. The trooper’s cruiser was parked behind the minivan in the westbound shoulder of the turnpike near mile marker 13 and the exit for Bryan. The police vehicle had its flashing lights on at the time. Trooper Alexander was standing between the van and a guardrail and as he spoke with the driver a westbound FedEx semi trailer truck slammed into the police cruiser and the minivan.

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The FedEx truck first hit the trooper’s vehicle, and then the cruiser plowed into the minivan, hitting Trooper Alexander and throwing him about 70 feet over the highway guardrail. The 18 wheeler then crashed through the guardrail and rolled over into a ditch at the side of the turnpike. The impact of the truck accident caused considerable damage to the police cruiser and the minivan.
Trooper Alexander would later say that he was retrieving Ms. Thomas’ driver’s license when he “heard tires hitting the rumble strips and saw a shadow coming toward him”.

The FedEx truck driver, 53 year old Patricia Chapman of Murchison, Texas, said she was looking “over her left shoulder” and apparently did not see the stopped police cruiser until it was too late to avoid a collision.

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Emergency personnel rushed to the truck accident scene and treated Trooper Alexander at the site before he was medically airlifted by LifeFlight to the University of Toledo Medical Center. According to hospital officials he suffered a shoulder injury and a laceration to his head. As of Thursday night he was listed in fair condition at the hospital.

The driver of the minivan, Ms. Thomas, was shaken up by the truck accident. EMTs treated her at the site and then transported her to nearby Montpelier Hospital.

The truck driver Ms. Chapman and her passenger, 34 year old Jiri Siuda of Frisco, TX, were not injured in the collision.

The truck driver has been charged with “Failure to Drive Within Marked Lanes on an Expressway”, “Failure to Slow Down”, and “Failure to Change Lanes for an Emergency Vehicle”.

According to Ohio Highway Patrol officials Trooper Alexander was following proper procedure by approaching the stopped minivan on the right side, out of the way of traffic.

The truck accident is still under investigation.

Indiana State Police, Jennings County Sheriff's Dept., Seymour Fire Department, and the Jennings County Volunteer Fire and Rescue responded to the scene of the truck accident.

Shortly after 5:00 p.m. Friday night, 33 year old Kevin L. Jayne of North Vernon, IN was driving a Dodge Dakota pickup truck east on U.S. Highway 50. As he neared the area of US 50 and County Road 900W he apparently lost control of his pickup, crossed over the center line of the highway, and into the path of a westbound 2006 Freightliner tractor trailer truck driven by 55 year old James R. Malone of Tower City, Pennsylvania…

The truck driver was unable to maneuver to avoid an accident, and collided head-on with the pickup truck. After hitting the tractor trailer, Mr. Jayne’s Dodge Dakota then bounced back into his original lane, directly in the path of another pickup truck, driven by 29 year old Corey M. Shultz of Plainfield, IN. Mr. Schultz, who had been driving behind Mr. Jayne at the time of the truck accident, slammed into the passenger side of Jayne’s Dodge Dakota.

The Dodge Dakota was left mangled after the multiple truck accidents, and emergency personnel had to use tools to cut him out of the wreckage. Mr. Jayne and his two unidentified passengers in the pickup truck were injured. Mr. Jayne and one of the passengers reportedly had each broken some bones. All three were stabilized and then transported to Schneck Memorial Hospital in Seymour, about 9 miles away.

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The driver of the tractor trailer truck, Mr. Malone, was not injured in the truck accident. However his tractor trailer was destroyed in the collision. One of the semi truck’s fuel tanks ruptured in the collision, and spilled about 200 gallons of diesel fuel out onto the highway.

Mr. Schultz, the driver of the second pickup, complained of back pains after the collision but there were no reports that he was taken to the hospital.

US Highway 50 was closed for about five hours in the vicinity of the truck accident, while investigators and crews worked to clean up the diesel fuel and remove the collision wreckage.

The truck accident investigators have not determined the exact reason Mr. Jayne crossed the highway, which set the multiple vehicle accident into motion. However, the roads were slushy at the time of the truck accident, so weather may have been a factor.

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No charges or citations have been made at this time.

Indiana State Police, Jennings County Sheriff’s Dept., Seymour Fire Department, and the Jennings County Volunteer Fire and Rescue responded to the scene of the truck accident.

For more information about Indiana trucking laws, truck injury victims rights, contact an  experienced IN truck accident attorney for the best advise possible. For a free initial consultation,  contact an Indiana truck accident lawyer today .

Two family members die after Chevy van was rear ended by tractor trailer on I 65

The tractor trailer accident occurred shortly before 3:30 a.m. Sunday as a full size 2010 Chevy passenger van was traveling north on I-65, headed for Chicago. The van was carrying 18 members of an extended family, both adults and children. The family group had been attending a kite flying event in Atlanta, Georgia …

At the same time a truck driver, 42 year old Randall L. Chriscoe of Ramseur, North Carolina, was also northbound on I-65, driving a 2007 Freightliner. Some witnesses reported that the blue tractor trailer was speeding and weaving back and forth on the highway prior to the accident.

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At the stretch of highway near mile marker 80, the Chevy passenger van was attempting to pull onto the shoulder of the highway when the 18 wheeler slammed into the rear of the van. The impact pushed the passenger van off the road and caused the smaller vehicle to flip over.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call from another motorist, alerting them to the truck accident.

When the officers and the emergency responders arrived at the scene, they found that two of the van passengers had already died from injuries sustained in the truck accident. The victims were identified as 20 year old Vijay Patel of Broadview, IL and 20 year old Sujal Patel of Summit, IL.

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The remaining 16 passengers also suffered a range of injuries in the truck collision. Some victims reportedly only had scratches while others were in much more serious condition. All 16 were treated and stabilized at the scene and then transported to three area hospitals. Authorities later reported that as of Sunday night, three of the family members were at Methodist Hospital listed in critical condition, and some of the others had been treated for serious injuries.

The truck driver was also injured in the tractor trailer collision. He was transported to Johnson County Hospital with minor injuries, according to the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department.

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The area of Interstate 65 surrounding the truck accident scene was shut down while officials investigated the collision and crews cleaned up the highway. Drivers were diverted around the truck accident scene until I-65 eventually reopened around 9:00 a.m. Sunday morning.

The Shelby County Fatal Crash Team was brought in to work on the truck accident reconstruction and investigation. There was some speculation that the truck driver was impaired, possiblly sleepy, at the time of the truck accident based on the witness reports that he was speeding and driving erratically before the collision. The weather may also have been a factor, as well as the highway which some reported has having a large amount of potholes.

Authorities took blood samples from both the truck driver and the driver of the passenger van. The samples were sent to the Indiana State Department of Toxicology.

No charges have been made at this time.

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One of 2 cars crushed in fatal semi truck accident on State Highway 37 just outside of Orleans, IN. Photo credit: WXIN-TV FOX59

According to Indiana authorities who responded to the truck accident scene, 33 year old Israel Rankin of Paoli, IN was driving his flatbed truck southbound on Highway 37. Rankin is the owner of the truck and was hauling a load of steel coils, transporting the heavy coils from Portage to Jeffersonville for Sonny’s Truck Sales, based in Paoli.

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At approximately 7:20 p.m., as Rankin was taking a curve in the highway, one of the steel coils became loose and rolled off the semi truck. The steel coil, which weighed almost 44,000 pounds, struck a pick-up truck that was traveling in the northbound lanes of the highway, crushing the vehicle and killing the driver and one of the passengers. The loose steel coil then hit the car behind the pick-up, a 2009 Chevy Aveo, also crushing the car and killing the driver.

All of the deceased reportedly died at the scene of the truck accident from the injuries they suffered when the steel coil crushed their vehicles. The driver of the Aveo has been identified as 41 year old Michael Daughtery of Mitchell, IN. The victims in the pickup truck driver were identified as 22 year old Zachery Staggs of Bedford, IN and his 21 year old girlfriend Shannon Steele of Jasper, IN.

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The lone survivor of the truck accident is Zachery’s younger sister who was sitting in the front seat of the pickup truck. Mackenzie Taylor, 11 years old, suffered numerous injuries when the steel coil fell on her brother’s truck. Emergency workers treated her at the scene and then airlifted her to Kosair Children’s Hospital in nearby Louisville, KY.

Miss Taylor is listed in fair condition with a broken nose and ankle, and a cut to her face. Highway 37 was closed for about six hours after the truck accident.

Rankin, the semi truck driver, talked to several authorities at the scene. The truck driver says that earlier in the evening as he was traveling through Mitchell, in Lawrence County, he was cut off by a car and had to brake suddenly to avoid a collision. The truck driver said that he felt that “something wasn’t right with the load from that point on”. This apparently happened in a section of Highway 37 about four miles north of the fatal truck accident scene.

Police report that the steel coils were secured to the semi flatbed truck with chains. However they report that the tie-down chain appears broken in one of the official evidential photos. One officer described the steel coils as having the look and shape of a hay bale, but weighing 43,960 pounds.

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The Orleans Police charged the truck driver with “Exceeding the legal weight capacity of the ties used to fasten the coil”. Although the investigation remains open, no other charges are expected at this time.

Several departments responded to the truck accident scene including officers from the Orange County Police and Sheriff Offices, and the Orleans and Indiana State police departments. Officers from the Indiana State Police Motor Carrier Division were also at the truck accident site to work on the accident reconstruction.

An overloaded truck or one that is traveling down the road with an unsecured load is a dangerous and deadly hazard. Preventing the contents of a trailer from falling out is many times not enough to stop accidents from happening. As the truck travels, the load shifts. If the center of gravity is off by even a small amount, that truck could tip over and land on the car next to them. That driver and those passengers face serious injury and death. It could easily be you and your family dealing with that hazard. For more information about trucking laws in your state, call 1.800.773.6770

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A Norfolk-Southern train slammed into a pick-up truck at its crossing on Hitzfield Street in Huntington, Indiana tragically killing a father and son Weds morning on December 30, 2009

The Norfolk-Southern train slammed into the pick-up truck at its crossing on Hitzfield Street shortly after 11am, instantly killing the father, 44-year old Wally Bowers and his son, 22-year old Nathan Bowers. The crossing does not have lights or swing arms, just two stop signs on both sides of the tracks.

The family of the victims of the train-truck accident spoke out to Indiana’s NewsCenter.

Wally sold scrap metal for a living to help support his family including his special-needs son Nathan. LeBecca Boyer, Wally’s former wife, owns several rental properties, but the economy has taken a toll on her income, leaving no money for Christmas presents.

Now Boyer is left with little money for funeral expenses for men she says would have given the shirts off their backs for anybody.

“I’ll sell my house and all of my belongings if I have to,” said a tearful LeBecca.

Boyer and her family hope new safety measures will be installed at the crossing. Residents tell Indiana’s NewsCenter that something “should be done there” to prevent another tragedy.

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Semi truck carrying hazardous materials jackknives after being hit by car on US 30 in Warsaw, IN

The Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department suspects that the driver of the passenger vehicle was impaired or intoxicated and legal blood toxicology is pending.

Both drivers were taken to Kosciusko Community Hospital. The driver of the semi-tanker truck was treated and released, but the passenger vehicle driver was reported to be in serious condition with a possible broken neck.

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HAZMAT crews were on the scene slowly removing the anhydrous ammonia and transferring it into another tanker. Westbound U.S. 30 will be closed from C.R. 350 West to C.R. 650 West for an undetermined time today.

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BLOOMFIELD, IN – On Sep 24 at about 7:00 am, just east of Bloomfield, in Greene County, Indiana, a semi truck carrying a load of over 5000 gallons of hot asphalt rolled over several times and landed in a ditch spilling hot liquid asphalt. The semi truck driver was lucky to escape with minor injury.

Lt. Bryan K. Woodall of the Greene County Sheriff’s Dept. stated that the semi truck accident happened at 6:05 am on State Road 54 near County Road 375E. James Wilcox, 27 years old, from Magnolia, Kentucky, was the driver of the semi truck. He was suffering from a cut in the head and was transported to Greene County General Hospital by the Greene County Ambulance Service.

Wilcox was travelling westbound on the highway 54 in a 2001 Freightliner semi-tanker owned by Kevin Lucas Trucking Inc. (Cecilia, KY). The semi truck was hauling a load of about 5,900 gallons of hot liquid asphalt. Wilcox said that he was having trouble controlling the semi truck as he came around a curve when it started to roll over as it came near the bottom of the hill.

Lt. Woodall reported that the truck rolled off the south side of the curve and off the roadway, then came to a stop on its side. About 1,000 gallons of hot liquid asphalt spilled out of the top fill spout of the tanker.

A Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) crew from Task Force Seven was called in to clean up the accident. This crew consists of personnel from the Greencastle Fire Department and VCARE (from Vigo County). Crews from the VanBuren Township Fire Department (from Monroe County) were also called in to assist in the large containment effort.

Lt. Woodall also mentioned that the owner of Lucas Trucking (Kevin Lucas) was on his way to the scene of the accident with personnel to offload the remaining hot liquid asphalt from the tanker. This would lighten the load so the wrecking service would be able to upright the overturned rig.

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Immediately after the crash on Main St. and Vandalia in Clymers, local residents and Good Samaritans Michael Wallace and Jared Russell rushed to the scene of the violent truck accident and found the semi driver on the ground where he had been thrown from the cab by the force of the collision. Some debris from the crash had fallen on top of him after he hit the ground. The semi-truck was split in two by the force of the accident.

The men stated that all they could see was the driver’s arm. They pulled 3 or 4 railroad ties off him, then stabilized him, then applied pressure to a gash in his forehead. Russell’s and Wallace’s quick action helped sustained Brandt until emergency workers arrived and transported him to the hospital.

It is not clear exactly what happened, but it is believed that Brandt was trying to move his truck off the tracks when it stalled. Police say they believe Brandt was trying to get out of the cab and off the tracks when the accident occurred.

The train that collided with the truck was the Triple Crown. Wallace stated that he heard the train whistle blow 8 or 10 times, which he said was unusual … then he heard a big “Boom!” He also stated that this was a heavily trafficked area for trains. Both Russell and Wallace both said that the trains come through there very fast.

Russell, who has CPR certification, stated that he was glad that he took classes and that he planned to keep his first aid certifications current and not let them lapse.

The truck driver, Brandt, was airlifted to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana for treatment. He suffered severe head and internal injuries.

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