The crash left one 18-wheeler demolished, the second 18-wheeler was pushed into four-wheel vehicles and the third 18-wheeler exited the highway and ended up in the woods. One 18-wheeler driver had to be cut from the cab of the wrecked big rig.

Eastbound lanes of I-20 were closed while crews cleaned up the debris and leaked diesel fuel. The wreck caused a huge traffic back-up on both the eastbound and westbound lanes of I-20 near Shreveport.

The 18-wheeler, marked with the company name Texas International Express LLC, was traveling north about 5 miles north of Pearl River when its front left tire blew out, said Trooper Nick Manale, spokesman for State Police Troop L. The driver, Juan Torres, 37, of Montgomery, Texas, lost control of the rig, and the tractor-trailer rumbled across the median and struck the southbound pickup nearly head-on, police said. After impact, the pickup and 18-wheeler slid off the highway, coming to a halt in the treeline on the west side of the interstate, Manale said.

Troopers specializing in vehicle inspection were brought in to determine whether the 18-wheeler had all of the required equipment and whether that equipment was properly installed, police said. Federal Motor Carrier SafetyRegulations require an 18-wheeler driver to perform a pre-trip inspection and a end of the day report. A driver cannot operate a commercial motor vehicle until he has inspected his equipment including the tires for good working order.

§392.7 Equipment, inspection and use.

No commercial motor vehicle shall be driven unless the driver is satisfied that the following parts and accessories are in good working order, nor shall any driver fail to use or make use of such parts and accessories when and as needed:

Service brakes, including trailer brake connections.
Parking (hand) brake.
Steering mechanism.
Lighting devices and reflectors.
Tires.
Horn.
Windshield wiper or wipers.
Rear-vision mirror or mirrors.
Coupling devices.

[33 FR 19732, Dec. 25, 1968, as amended at 60 FR 38746, July 28, 1995]

Emergency rescuers could not get close because the flames were too hot. The police officer and his cousin who was also killed were in the SUV. Investigators also mistook the SUV for a small car. Also killed were the drivers of the 18-wheelers. The driver of the broken down 18-wheeler on the shoulder was asleep in the cab and not injured. He was cited for failure to properly display warning devices for a disabled vehicle on the shoulder. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations require the 18-wheeler driver to take immediate steps to protect the motoring public. Part 392.22: Emergency signals; stopped commercial motor vehicles.

The impact was significant enough for the 18-wheeler to spill his load. Further investigation will identify why the 18-wheeler driver lost control of his rig. Was there driver distraction, improper lane change, fatigue? An alert, aware, and oriented professional truck driver should not hit the overpass.

Last year, 20 people were killed and 1,007 were injured in crashes over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. A nationally funded campaign running through January 3, 2010 is providing overtime grants to State Police and 80 local enforcement agencies to do special DWI patrols and sobriety checkpoints, according to the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission. The motoring public needs to slow down, have patience, and no texting.

Keep a distance from 18-wheelers and leave yourself adequate time to observe dangers and react. No drinking and driving. One drink has been shown to alter your reaction time. That one holiday drink may be the difference between you avoiding a crash and getting into a crash. People who witness aggressive or impaired driving should call *LSP (*577) from their cell phone or call their local law enforcement agency.

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Two people were killed in the crash of the Strain Bus Line Coach. The bus was carrying passengers back home after an outing to a casino. The tour bus returning from an Iowa casino ran off a southern Minnesota interstate and rolled over in a ditch Wednesday, killing 2 people and injuring 21, authorities said.

 The bus, operated by Strain Bus Line Motorcoach Tours in Rochester, was eastbound on Interstate 90 just west of Austin about 3:20 pm when it crossed into the westbound lanes and flipped over, Department of Public Safety spokesman Andy Skoogman said. The bus was carrying 23 people, including the driver, Skoogman said. 20 passengers were taken to medical centers. The driver was airlifted to a hospital in Rochester. Firefighters pulled off the bus’ windshield because the 47-passenger coach had settled on its right side, blocking the door.

Bold Lines, Inc., which does business under the name Strain Tours, is an operator with six drivers and four buses and has had no accidents in the past two years, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s web site. But federal records reveal some safety problems in the past. The FMCSA reports that as a result of five inspections during the past 2 years, 60% of the company’s buses had to be pulled out of service for violations. That compares to the national average of 22%. The company also has an Inspection Selection System rating of 76; scores between 75 to 100 mean an inspection is warranted. The company has also run into trouble related to its record keeping. In February 2002, federal transportation authorities pulled the company’s buses off the road for what inspectors described as “numerous violations” of federal transportation rules related to record keeping. The company ended up paying $20,000 to settle an enforcement case concerning drug testing for drivers, according to the FMCSA. It also paid $300 to settle a case over driver duty times and record keeping.

The U.S. Department of Transportation must fast track its action plan aimed at improving motor coach safety. The plan calls for additional requirements including installing seat belts and enhancing roof strength. It would also boost regulatory oversight of new and high-risk motor coach operators. Frequency of medical exams and medical certification should be a priority.

Pineville Police report all four lanes of La. 28 were to be reopened around 5:30, but that it may take a while for traffic to resume flowing. An eye witnesses stated that traffic was backed up for miles.

Our question is simple: why did the 18-wheeler accident occur? Had the truck driver been driving too long? Was the truck in the wrong lane of travel at impact?

What other factors exist for this inconvenient and needless wreck? The lesson here is to drive defensively around these behemoth tractor/trailer 18-wheelers.

Authorities say the 18-wheeler driver held the men at knifepoint for about 10 minutes after he was issued a citation and told to park his truck. He was arrested on kidnapping charges and taken to jail.

The reason the truck driver was told to park his truck was because he was over his allowed hours of drive time. Under Federal law, drivers are allowed to drive just so much. Under current federal regulations, there are 2 cumulative driving time rules – one allows truck drivers to drive 60 hours in 7 consecutive days; and the second allows them to drive 70 hours in 8 consecutive days. To restart the 60 or 70 hour clock, they must have at least 34 consecutive hours off-duty. No driver is allowed to drive more than 11 cumulative hours following 10 consecutive hours off.

The FMCSA web site shows that in the past 30 months, the motor carrier of the truck driver has had 36 out-of-service violations for exceeding the 11-hour driving limit and 40 out-of-service violations for exceeding the 14-hour on duty limit. The FMCSA SafeStat shows the trucking company has a deficient Driver Safety Evaluation. Thanks for getting this trucker off the Interstate.

The victim was struck and killed by an 18-wheeler about 10:20 p.m. Wednesday on I-20 near Bert Kouns Industrial Loop. The truck driver told police he hit a pedestrian who was in the roadway. The investigation is ongoing.

“The 18-wheeler didn’t see the cars braking and rear ended the car in front of it,” Lufkin Police Officer Eddie Ibarra said. The driver of the car, who is pregnant, and her three passengers, including her sister were taken by ambulance to Lufkin hospitals. The 18-wheeler driver was ticketed for failure to control speed, Ibarra said.

In a safety recommendation issued by NTSB, it wants FMCSA to “develop and disseminate guidance for commercial drivers, employers and physicians” for identifying high-risk drivers. The NTSB’s recommendation specifically mentioned “commercial drivers,” an referenced an incident of a tractor-trailer driver with diagnosed OSA. He had collided with a Tennessee Highway Patrol vehicle, killing the trooper. The 18-wheeler driver had surgery for OSA but hadn’t reported his condition when examined for his medical certification. Other NTSB investigations mentioned included two commercial airline pilots who fell asleep (one of whom was at risk for OSA) and missed their intended destination airport in Hilo, Hawaii, and a train engineer who had been diagnosed with OSA who went through a stop and struck another train.

The NTSB said the prevalence of OSA is more than 50 percent in patients with an average body mass index of 40.0. It also mentioned a 2006 consensus statement from the Joint Task Force of the American College of Chest Physicians, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and the National Sleep Foundation recommending that commercial drivers with a body mass index of 35 or higher and hypertension that can’t be controlled on less than two medications not be certified for longer than three months pending a formal OSA evaluation. Sleepiness from sleep apnea has been shown to significantly increase a driver’s risk of driving drowsy. Driver fatigue and sleepiness is a major cause of truck crashes. Stricter screening mandates could reduce the risk of truck crashes.

At the outset, this sounds far-fetched and highly unlikely. However, the lawsuit states that two nurses at the hospital noticed the missing watch and, after hospital security was called to investigate, the doctor allegedly defied security orders and left the emergency room to go outside and throw the watch into the grass. Apparently the hospital’s administration confronted the physician with video taped evidence of the theft and removed him from working at the hospital. Dr. Enmon was indicted on 1 count of grand theft on August 25, 2009.

If not our doctor, who can we trust?

In my 47 years of experience, I have come to agree with the Psalmist who says: It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. (Psalms 118:8)

When the 18-wheeler veered out of its lane, a sports utility vehicle traveling next to it apparently was caused to veer resulting in the 18-wheeler and SUV entering the westbound lanes of traffic causing a collision with 5 other west bound vehicles. The Budweiser trailer jack-knifed and came to a rest in the westbound lanes.

10 people were transported to area hospitals. The interstate was shut down for nearly 3 hours to conduct the investigation and clear the crash site. Our question is simple: why did the 18-wheeler driver veer out of his lane? Fatigue, sleep apnea, mechanical problem, driving too long?

“We are not going to break everyone of their bad habits — but we are going to raise awareness and sharpen the consequences,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
As a first step, LaHood said President Barack Obama signed an executive order banning all federal workers from texting while driving on government business, driving government vehicles or using government equipment.

The administration also will push to disqualify school bus drivers who are convicted of texting while driving from keeping their commercial driver’s licenses.
Researchers, safety groups, automakers and lawmakers gathered for a two day conference to discuss the perils of distracted driving, hearing sobering data from the government that underscored the safety threat as more motorists stay connected with cell phones and mobile devices.

The Transportation Department reported that 5,870 people were killed and 515,000 were injured last year in crashes connected to driver distraction, often involving mobile devices or cell phones. Driver distraction was involved in 16% of all fatal crashes in 2008 and was more prevalent among young drivers. The next step is to ban texting by automobile drivers.

• Require both the driver and front and rear seat passengers to use seatbelts.

• Require motorists to leave at least three feet of clearance when overtaking and passing a bicycle proceeding in the same direction.

• Restrict the use of the left lane on multilane roadways. Left lane use allowed only if they are:

1. preparing for a left turn at an intersection, private road or driveway; passing another vehicle traveling in the same direction below the posted speed limit;
2. right lanes are congested;
3. emergency vehicles are parked on or near the right shoulder and have their emergency lights activated; or otherwise directed by law enforcement.
4. drivers who must use the left lane must do so at a speed not less than vehicles traveling in the right lane.

Hopefully enforcement of these new highway safety laws will reduce car crashes resulting in unnecessary injuries and loss of life and improve overall roadway safety for all of us.