January 2, 2008

At Least 50 People Sent Hospitals After Greyhound Bus-Tractor-Trailer Accident Near Henderson, North Carolina

Two people were taken to a hospital in Chapel Hill, North Carolina in critical condition and at least 48 others were transported to a Henderson hospital after a Greyhound Bus and a tractor-trailer collided near Henderson.

The bus was headed toward Raleigh on U.S. Route 1, when, according to a NC Highway Patrol Officer, it failed to slow down while the tractor-trailer attempted to turn. The bus rear-ended the truck. The bus then drove off the shoulder and down an embankment where it landed on its side.

If you are ever injured in an accident involving a bus or truck anywhere in North Carolina or South Carolina, you should speak to a personal injury lawyer right away.

Truckers and bus drivers are upheld to higher standards of motor vehicle safety than regular motorists. Injury accident cases involving buses or trucks are usually more complicated to prove than car accident or motorcycle crash cases.

An experienced truck accident attorney will be familiar with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations that truck drivers and bus drivers are required to follow. A truck crash attorney knows what to look for to determine whether the truck driver was working beyond his or her legally allowed number of hours or whether a truck malfunction was the cause of a deadly crash.

Your bus accident lawyer can also determine whether other parties, ncluding the bus company, the government, a school district, or anyone else aside from the bus driver, can be held liable for your injury accident.

The size and weight of a large motor vehicle striking a victim who has little in the way of physical protection can lead to catastrophic—even deadly—injuries. Children, especially those riding school buses, are especially prone to serious injuries if they are involved in a school bus accident.

There are specific steps that you must take to maximize your chances for recovery in North Carolina or South Carolina if you are involved in any kind of motor vehicle crash.

50 Hurt in NC Bus, Tractor-Trailer Wreck, FoxNews, January 2, 2007

Greyhound Bus, Tractor-Trailer Collide On U.S. 1 Near Henderson, WXII12, January 2, 2007


Related Web Resources:

FMCSA

Greyhound Bus Line

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November 9, 2007

Dozens of North Carolina School Kids are Injured When School Buses Collide

In Selma, North Carolina, approximately three dozen students sustained minor injuries on Wednesday in a bus accident on Highway 96. The school children were taken to local hospitals following the multi-bus accident.

Three school buses were involved in the motor vehicle collision, in which one bus rear-ended another. The driver of one of the buses sustained neck injuries. A parent of one of the children experienced a panic attack and also had to be taken to a hospital.

The school buses had come from Selma Middle School and Selma Elementary School.

Every day, more than 23 million elementary, middle school, and high school children ride school buses to and from school. At least 17,000 kids are injured in school bus accidents each year.

School bus drivers and the schools and bus companies that employ them are required to exert a reasonable duty of care to make sure that children who ride the buses are transported safely to and from school. If their failure to exercise this reasonable care causes a student on the bus or a student getting on/off the bus or walking near the bus to become injured, the bus driver, the school, and/or the bus company may be held liable for personal injury.

Bus accidents can result in serious injuries, including abrasions, internal injuries, burns, broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and death.

Common kinds of injury accidents involving school buses include a bus colliding with another motor vehicle, a bus striking a pedestrian, a student sustaining injuries while getting on and off the bus, and bus rollovers. Causes of driver negligence can include speeding, carelessness, not paying proper attention (including talking on the cell phone or text messaging while driving), reckless driving, and drunk driving. The school or bus company’s hiring of unqualified bus driver and improper maintenance of the bus can also lead to bus crashes.

If your child was injured or killed in a bus accident in North Carolina or South Carolina, you should speak with a personal injury attorney who is experienced in dealing with bus accident cases.

Bus wreck injures students, News & Observer, November 9, 2007

27 kids injured in school bus crash, News14.com/AP, November 7, 2007

School bus injuries much higher than thought, MSNBC.com/AP, November 6, 2006


Related Web Resource:

School Bus Fatalities and Injuries, NCSBS.com

Continue reading "Dozens of North Carolina School Kids are Injured When School Buses Collide" »