3 Texas Truck Crashes Raise Maintenance Concerns

Poorly maintained trucks are trucks that can kill.

Since April of 2014, three separate crashes have occurred in the Dallas/Fort Worth area as a result of a leaf spring breaking off an 18-wheeler. The leaf spring, which is part of a truck’s suspension system, weighs about 11 pounds, and is something that cracks over time, not in an instant. More than likely, these three accidents could have been avoided with proper maintenance inspections.

In two of the three accidents, the victims miraculously survived after sustaining serious injuries. Tragically, one of the victims, Tina Reese, was killed. In these three accidents, the trucks were never found.

Robert Mills, a Fort Worth Police Officer, has been inspecting trucks for 13 years. One out of every four trucks his team inspect fails inspection and is pulled out of service, most commonly for brake issues. Considering it takes the average 18-wheeler traveling 60 mph the length of a football field to stop, brake issues in a truck are extremely dangerous. The law states that drivers are required to do inspections before and after each trip, but from what Mills sees on a daily basis, that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes, truck drivers do inspect their truck, but don’t have time to fix the problem, so they drive it knowing the issue is there. Bill Graves, president and CEO of the American Trucking Association, is disgusted by that disregard for safety. He says, “We have really fine, responsible owners and operators, and we have owners and operators who shouldn’t be in our business. We’d like to see them off the road.”

Since not every truck driver has the same care and devotion to safety, tragic accidents occur. If you or someone you know has been injured or killed as the result of a trucking accident, seek immediate help from a knowledgeable trucking accident attorney. Time is of the essence in these cases.

Read original article here.