A truck driver has been charged after being involved in a truck accident in Clayton County, Georgiain which a police officer was injured. The trucker had been driving a massive tractor-trailer rig, when he rear-ended a patrol car in front of him. The police officer was driving the Department of Transportation truck on the road when the truck accident occurred. The officer suffered serious injuries, and had to be airlifted to Grady Memorial Hospital. The tractor-trailer driver meanwhile has been charged with causing serious injury by vehicle, following too closely and too fast.
One of the challenges of operating a massive truck is understanding that your vehicle takes a much longer time to come to a complete stop than a passenger vehicle. It’s important for all 18-wheeler drivers to understand that this greatly increased stopping distance amplifies the risks of colliding with a vehicle in front.
Any time a passenger vehicle is involved in an accident with a tractor-trailer, injuries sustained can be extremely series. A typical rear ender accident involving two passenger vehicles can cause whiplash and other injuries. However, when you have a massive 18-wheeler weighing more than 80,000 pounds rear ending a passenger vehicle, the kind of injuries that the passenger car occupants suffer can be devastating.
There is no information about the kind of injuries that the police officer suffered here. However, there can be severe spinal cord injuries, neck injuries and head injuries in such accidents that can require immediate and extensive hospitalization. Victims of such injuries could be looking at weeks of hospitalization, and painful and expensive therapy.
If you’ve been involved in a truck accident in the metro Atlanta area, contact an Atlanta truck accident attorney at the Katz Personal Injury Lawyers for a free initial evaluation of your case.