Lake Worth Beach tragic accident
On Sunday, December 13, a tragic accident on Florida’s Turnpike left one Lake Worth Beach resident dead.
Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) officials say the accident happened around 5:15 AM, just south of the Boynton Beach Boulevard exit, in the southbound lanes at mile marker 86. The woman’s sedan had stopped in the outside lane. A tractor-trailer struck and partially ran over it, according to FHP. Both vehicles were pushed into the guard rail. Unfortunately, when first responders arrived, the 60-year-old woman driving the sedan was pronounced dead.
The truck’s driver had minor injuries.
Unfortunately, commercial truck accidents are a frequent problem here. Florida is one of nine states in the US that produce roughly half of all fatal truck crashes. Nationally, commercial motor vehicles (mostly large trucks) make up about 12 percent of all traffic fatalities. As with the Boynton Beach case, the fatalities are most often the occupants of passenger vehicles involved in accidents with a truck.
Because of their large size and weight, tractor trailers can easily do much more damage to a small passenger vehicle like a car than vice versa, thus increasing the risk of injury and death for those in the smaller vehicle.
The causes of large truck accidents are varied.
Speed and distracted driving are often factors. Accidents involving a stopped vehicle frequently happen because the moving car was going too fast and the driver was unable to stop in time. It’s important to always maintain a safe following distance, whether you drive a tractor trailer or a small passenger vehicle.
If you’ve ever had your car stall out unexpectedly, you know that a sudden mechanical failure can lead to unexpectedly stopping in the middle of the road. Maintaining a safe speed and following distance will help reduce the risk of accidents if this happens to another driver on the road.