Car accidents with chain reactions take a heavy toll
Some of the chain reaction accidents that occur in Georgia are bizarre and sometimes difficult to fully piece together. If the outcomes were not so tragic, the configurations and dynamics of such car accidents might be interesting to analyze. Forensic engineers with experience in reconstructing accidents are in fact brought into the process of personal injury litigation on a regular basis to analyze and explain how the accidents occurred and who is at fault.
A recent chain-reaction crash on 1-75 North in Marietta may need a forensic engineer to determine the contribution of one or more trucks in causing part of the accident. The accident ended with nine people being injured, but thankfully no deaths were reported. The events started when a car that was trying to change lanes struck a tractor-trailer. The car went spinning into a concrete median and then came to rest in the middle of the highway.
A box truck traveling in the same direction stopped on the highway to avoid hitting the stationary and inoperable car, according to the Georgia State Patrol. A minivan came along and hit the box truck, causing it to hit the original stopped car. A second tractor-trailer stopped on 1-75 to avoid hitting the car and a third tractor-trailer crashed into the rear of the stopped truck. Three children were taken to a hospital and six adults were also taken for treatment.
The Georgia State Patrol indicated that charges were pending but did not elaborate. It is not clear whether the car’s operator was impaired or drove in violation of the traffic laws. It appears clear that the driver of that vehicle created the circumstances for the chain reaction and is therefore likely to be held liable for compensating the personal injuries suffered by the victims. However, in this case one or more other vehicles may be partly liable. In such car accidents, whenever a moving vehicle does not stop in time to avoid hitting a stationary vehicle, the operator may also be partly at fault for extending the chain of injuries.
Source: ajc.com, “3 children, 6 adults injured in crash on I-75 in Marietta“, Lauren Foreman, March 6, 2018