Personal Injury Law

Maryland Woman Dies in ?Freak? Tractor-Trailer Crash in Montgomery County

By Jack Lebowitz, Esq. and Vadim Mzhen, Esq.

Silver Spring resident Norma Almeraya-Soria, 35, died on November 21 after she was hit by a tractor-trailer in Montgomery County, Maryland. Almeraya-Soria was on the curb near the sidewalk at the intersection of Columbia Pike and Stewart Lane in Silver Spring when the axle of a tractor-trailer trying to make a turn broke.

Almeraya-Soria ended up under the trailer and died at the accident scene. Her body remained under the truck for a number of hours before it could be recovered. Police in Maryland are investigating whether a mechanical failure was responsible for the freak accident. The tractor-trailer, owned by Pet Valu, a Canadian pet store with branches in Maryland, was carrying pet supplies.

If you were injured in a tractor-trailer crash caused by another party?s negligence or carelessness or if someone you love died in a motor vehicle accident that was someone else?s fault, you should contact a Maryland or Washington D.C. truck collision lawyer right away to find out of you have grounds for filing a truck accident or wrongful death claim or lawsuit.

Mechanical failures and defective truck parts are among the most common causes of accidents involving large trucks. It is important to hire an experienced truck accident lawyer who knows how to determine whether a personal injury or wrongful death accident occurred because the breaks, the steering wheel, a tire, the engine, or another vehicle part was defective.

The owner of the truck is liable for making sure that the vehicle is properly maintained and operational before taking it out on the road.

A mechanical failure may be the fault of the truck driver, the truck owner, the maintenance shop, or the manufacturer. There may be more than one party that can be held liable for the truck accident injury or death.

2006 Truck Accident Statistics:

? 4,732 large trucks were involved in deadly accidents.
? 4,995 people died in accidents involving large trucks.
? There were 57,213 big trucks involved in injury accidents.
? 85,984 people were injured in accidents involving huge trucks.

Woman Hit, Killed In 'Freak' Tractor-Trailer Accident, MSNBC.com, November 22, 2007

2006 National Crash Facts, Ai.volpe.dot.gov

Related Web Resource:

Trucking Industry Statistics and Causes of Truck Accidents, Road Safe America.org

Full post as published by Maryland Accident Law Blog on December 10, 2007 (boomark / email).