A fiery explosion from a fatal accident involving six trucks and a car in East Texas that killed two on Sept.29, 2008 puts the spotlight back on the need for truck safety in Texas. The near-midnight collision closed Interstate 20 eastbound for hours. A video clip on CNN shows flames engulfing the wreckage. Jim Adler & Associates has created a new web site, www.18wheeleraccident.org, to keep the public informed about their legal rights in truck accidents and the need for new laws. It includes a stunning video about the son of a Texas man who was killed in one of the most horrific truck accidents in recent years. The two people who died in the East Texas accident were in a car. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration says drivers and passengers in cars account for 78 percent of the fatalities in accidents involving cars and large trucks.
An investigative story in the Dallas Morning News on truck safety in Texas reports that “truck drivers were at fault in at least 44 percent of all accidents between cars and big trucks.” The paper spent seven months researching its series. With more miles of roads and the second highest number of registered trucks, Texas has one of the highest rates of fatal truck accidents in the United States. The need for tougher truck laws extends beyond Texas, however. The national death toll in truck related accidents “is the equivalent of 26 major airplane crashes every year…” according to the Truck Safety Coalition, a national non-profit organization devoted to reducing fatal truck accidents.
The mark that Hurricane Ike left on Houston and its environs will be around for a long time and it’s not because the damage will take months to repair. It’s because some insurance companies will delay paying claims as long as they can. Given Jim Adler’s 30 years of experience with insurance companies trying to dodge their responsibilities, he has plunged into the middle of the mess to protect homeowners and businesses from insurance fraud. Case evaluations at Jim Adler & Associates are free and so is representation.
Add the word “bad” to this one. ATV accidents can have catastrophic consequences, including permanent debilitating injuries and even death. So you might want to do a little more thinking about using an ATV to get to your deer blind this fall.
Victims and lawyers alike are watching a case set for November before the U.S. Supreme Court. Critics, including the AARP, say it could unjustly deprive victims all over the United States of their day in court if they or their loved ones die or suffer devastating consequences after taking prescribed drugs that are okayed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
It still says Gardasil is okay. So does the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The vaccine “prevents four viruses that account for about 70 percent of cervical cancers” according to its manufacturer, Merck. But this summer complaints from parents of girls who suffered serious side effects after taking the drug trained a national spotlight on the vaccine. CBS News reported in July that there were “more than a dozen deaths and 8,000 adverse reactions” to the vaccine. But the FDA says it has detected no common pattern in the deaths indicating that the vaccine caused them. The federal agency says the vaccine is an important preventive. More than 4,000 women in the United States die every year from cervical cancers that are caused by the sexually transmitted viruses Gardasil prevents. The FDA says benefits of the vaccine outweigh any risks. To be effective, it must be administered to young girls before sexual activity begins.
