Truck Driver Injures 16 People in Highway 40 Pile-Up
Recently, truck driver Jeffrey R. Knight, caused an 11-car pile up on Highway 40 just west off Interstate 270 near Chesterfield, MO. Our initial report is that 16 were injured, including several fatalities. Ironically, the trucker was not injured.
Witness Frank Steinhoff was in the lane next to the trucker. Steinhoff estimated the truck was traveling approximately 75mph - well over the speed limit. He said the truck never slowed down, but rather "He kept going and hitting cars".
Sgt. Al Nothum of the Missouri Highway Patrol said that Knight basically "ran over several vehicles". Sgt. Nothum further stated that he had a pretty good idea of what caused Knight to leave this path of destruction, but declined to disclose the details. However, he did indicate that he did not believe drugs or alcohol played any role.
The destruction was so massive that authorities spray painted numbers on all of the cars involved for help in the investigation.
While Sgt. Nothum declined to elaborate on the cause of the wreck, as a St. Louis Car Accident Lawyer, I think it is reasonable to conclude that the truck driver fell asleep at the wheel. Fatigue is a very common problem for truck drivers and is often caused my a multiple of factors including "highway hypnosis" and driving over the hours. The federal motor carrier safety regulations govern both the conduct of truck drivers and truck companies. Truck drivers are required to log not only their driving hours, but also the hours that they are on duty, but not driving and also off-duty. However, Missouri Tractor-Trailer Injury Lawyers often find that drivers fudge these logs. This can be determined by comparing their logs with the bills of lading (delivery receipts) and the GPS tracking services equipped on these trucks.
When truck drivers break these laws, we go after the company for punitive damages to punish them for this dangerous conduct and deter them from doing it in the future. And there is no question that the driver's conduct in this case was extremely dangerous.
The injured included members of an Amish community who were returning from a funeral. Tragically, two of them, Charles Cason and Lydia Miller, died in the collision.
Additionally, Susan Borntreger and Alvin Mast were seriously injured. Anna Eicher was also injured but was listed in satisfactory condition.
Our hearts and prayers go out to those injured and the family members of those who didn't survive.
If you would like to speak with a St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer, please call attorney Josh Myers at 314-720-2706 or toll free at 888-956-2487. It's always free to discuss your case and there are never any attorney's fee unless and until we recover for you.
