Posted on 31st March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
air crash, air crash attorney, air plane accident, Plane Hits UPS Facility, Virginia Small Plane Crash
A single-engine Piper plane with two passengers Tuesday crashed into the side of a UPS freight facility near the Roanoke, Va., airport. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/30/AR2010033002331.html
One person escaped from the plane in his own, and responders helped the other man out of the wreckage. Both men were taken to local hospitals, but there condition wasn’t known.
The small plane was taking off shortly before 1 p.m. when it hit some power lines, hit the corner of the UPS building and then ignited in flames.
The pilot of the plane had reported a problem to air traffic controllers right before the accident.
Posted on 30th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
Kentucky semi crash kills 11, Mennonites Killed in Kentucky crash, semi accident, tractor trailer accident, truck accident lawyer
A close-knit Mennonite community in Kentucky was in mourning this past weekend after 11 people, on their way to a wedding in Iowa, were killed in a horrific accident with a tractor-trailer. http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/kentucky-mennonites-labor-through-grief-to-bury-family/19416913?icid=main|main|dl1|link5|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aolnews.com%2Fnation%2Farticle%2Fkentucky-mennonites-labor-through-grief-to-bury-family%2F19416913 The Mennonites died after the truck crossed a highway meridian on I-65 in central Kentucky and hit the 15-seat Dodge van that the 11 deceased were traveling in. The tragedy took place shortly after 5:30 a.m., about 40 miles northwest of Bowling Green, not far from Mammoth Cave National Park.
In what seemed to be a minor miracle, the crash’s only survivors were two young brothers. They were both strapped into child safety seats, and lived after being thrown from the van. http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/mennonites_die_in_crash_gpYaJyIk3QymzvsZUcEUBL
The tractor-trailer driver, who was from Alabama, was among those killed in the crash.
The Mennonite deceased included John Esh, 64, and his 62-yar-old wife Sadie Esh, who owned a vinyl siding business in Marrowbone, Ky.
In addition, four of the Esh’s 12 children were killed, as well as their daughter-in-law, their youngest daughter’s fiancé, their infant grandchild and a family friend. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/27/us/27kentucky.html?ref=us The only crash survivors who were passengers in the van were the Eshes’ two grandsons, 5-year-old Josiah Esh and 3-year-old Johnny Esh.
Their adopted baby brother, Jalen, died in the collision.
This past weekend members of the Mennonite community were actually building coffins by hand for those who perished on Friday.
The van left Burkesville, Ky., Friday at 4 a.m. Central time, ending in what The New York Times called the worst two-vehicle highway crash in Kentucky since 1988. There were 27 people killed in that accident.
Posted on 25th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
Norway train accident, train accident attorney, train accident lawyer, train crash
Three dock workers were killed in Norway Wednesday when 16 runaway train cars careened down a hill for three miles at a port on the outskirts of Oslo. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5igERKDDvVX7IX54V2NwB9vuNn9FQD9ELL07G0
The empty cargo cars cut detached from a train, finally crashing into a storage building at the port terminal. Several of the cars went into the water. Along with the three who died in the accident, another four were hurt.
Faulty brakes were being blamed for the accident, although it still wasn’t clear if a technical or human error was involved. CargoNet, the train’s operator, said on its Web site that 16 cars derailed in a “serious” accident and that train traffic will remain affected throughout the day. http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/03/24/at-least-3-dead-in-norway-train-derailment/
The National Accident Commission was at the site, and all train traffic to and from Alnabru had been terminated. Alnabru is the terminal where the train was located before it derailed.
Posted on 19th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
Boeing auto pilot fix, Boeing overshoot runway fix, plane crash, plane crash attorney, plane wreck
Perhaps learning a lesson from the Toyota fiasco, the Federal Aviation Administration is trying to solve a potential problem before it causes an accident or kills anyone: It has ordered the installation of new software on Boeing 777s to make sure that the jets aren’t “over-running” runways. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703734504575125890262354822.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_business
The Wall Street Journal reported that Wednesday the FAA had issued a safety directive that could impact more than 800 planes. The order aims to solve an issue that comes up when any autopilot system is accidentally left on while a 777 is moving down a runway before it takes off.
If a pilot tries to take off with the autopilot on, he or she will face resistance and in most likelihood will abort the takeoff, even though the plane is traveling on the runway at a fast speed.
The FAA issued the directive following two incidents in January when pilots accidentally turned on the autopilot before beginning their takeoffs. When the pilots felt resistance from their controls as they attempted to take off, they aborted their attempts to leave the ground. And, luckily, they did not overshoot their runways.
There have been nine similar incidents since 1995, according to The Journal.
Boeing defended its 777s, saying that the aircraft has made more than 4.8 million flights without any accidents due to the autopilot issue.
The FAA wants airlines to comply with its directive within 90 days of it becoming final.
Posted on 18th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
brain injury, brain injury attorney, increasing speed limits, speed kills, speed limits and auto safety, truck accident lawyer, truck accidents
Highway speed limits continue to get higher, with Virginia last week becoming the most recent state to raise its limit to 70 mph. In fact, now 34 states have speed limits of 70 mph or more, prompting The Wall Street Journal Wednesday to call 70 mph “the new 55.” http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704688604575125510326010610.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_lifestyle
Virginia’s new governor, Bob McDonnell, had made increasing the speed limit on rural roads to 70 mph from 65 mph one of his priorities. And 70 mph isn’t the top of the scale for speed limits. Idaho, New Mexico and Nevada have speed limits up to 75 mph on some rural interstates.
It seems to us that higher speed limits are a bad idea. People seem to want to behave foolishly behind the wheel, be it by using a cellphone, engaging in amorous behavior or trying to turn around and discipline an unruly child. And when foolish moves are made at 70 mph, the consequences are a lot worse than if a vehicle is traveling at 55 mph.
Proponents of the higher speed limits maintain that drivers should be trusted to use their own judgment as to what speeds they should be traveling at, depending on the weather and other conditions.
After the Arab oil embargo in 1973, 55 mph was set as the national speed limit in an effort to save gasoline. That limit was increased to 65 mph in 1987, but a GOP-controlled Congress totally scrapped the national speed limit in 1995.
There is data both for and against raising speed limits. The Federal Highway Administration, for example, blamed roughly 30 percent of the 37,261 highway fatalities in 2008 on people exceeding speed limits, according to The Journal.
On the other side of the argument, advocates of higher speed limits note that deaths and fatalities are down in the United States, even though speed limits are up.
We’ll end on this note. The GPS maker TomTom did a study that found that when cruising on an open highway, American drivers tend to clock in at about 70 mph – never mind what the posted speed limit is.
Posted on 13th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
air crash, air crash attorney, airplane crash, AZ World War II aircraft crash, Chandler, P-51 Mustang crash
In a weird sort of way of reminding us of the sacrifice and importance of American Aviators in winning World War II, a second vintage aircraft has been in a deadly crashed this week. A World War II-era fighter plane crashed into a hangar of at an airport in Chandler, Ariz., Thursday, killing the pilot. http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/03/12/20100312aircrash0312.html
As reported here, last Saturday another World War II aircraft crashed in the Gulf of Mexico. http://semi-accident.com/blog/2010/03/neurosurgeon-pilot-and-his-passenger-killed-in-crash-of-vintage-plane.html
In the Arizona crash, Nazirudin Hirani died in the accident, involving a rare P-51 Mustang, a 1944 fighter plane. The plane was registered to Hirani’s company, Hirani Oil Arizona and is under investigation,
Witnesses said they saw the aircraft flying erratically as it flew over Stellar Airpark. The plane was flying low, and them made a sharp turn to fly toward the airport, as if attempting to make a landing. It hit a hangar, setting it on fire.
Kurt Gearhart, Hirani’s friend and a Southwest Airlines pilot, told The Arizona Republic that he had been a passenger in Hirani’s plane Thursday for a trip to Phoenix Mesa Gateway Airport. The two men ate breakfast, and then Hirani displayed his rare P-51 for an aircraft mechanics symposium. http://www.azcentral.com/community/chandler/articles/2010/03/12/20100312friends-remember-pilot-who-died-in-chandler-crash.html
Gearhart couldn’t stay for the presentation.
Hirani’s plane crashed as he was on his way back to his hangar at Stellar Airpark.
Posted on 12th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
brain injury attorney, plane crash, plane crash attorney, Travis Baker $12 million settlement, Travis Barker plane crash
The survivors of Travis Barker’s friend, Chris Baker, will receive a $12 million settlement in a wrong death suit stemming from the 2008 plane crash that killed four people, according to TMZ. http://www.tmz.com/2010/03/10/travis-barker-chris-baker-jet-crash-wrongful-death-settlement-estate/
Clay Lacy Aviation, Rubber Learjet and Goodyear Tire will ante up $7,625,000 to Baker’s widow, Otilia Villar Baker, and $4,375,000 to his 3-year-old son Sebastian.
The legal documents that TMZ obtained said that the son’s settlement money will pay for annuities, which will pay him $17.4 million over his lifetime.
Barker and his fellow band member Adam Goldstein survived the crash, which took place after their Learjet plane unsuccessfully tried to take off from an airport in South Carolina.
Baker, another friend and two pilots died in the crash.
Posted on 11th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
brain damage, brain injury, brain injury attorney, NASCAR and brain injury, NASCAR and injury prevention
Nascar officials promised this year to make racing more aggressive, “a full-contact sport,” to keep wavering fans interested. And they seem to be intent on fulfilling that mission, big time.
Tuesday the sport’s officials only gave probation, essentially just a slap on the wrist, to a driver who deliberately wrecked another driver’s car. The three-race probation was given to Carl Edwards over his retaliatory actions Sunday at the Atlanta Motor Speedway against Brad Keselowski. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/10/sports/autoracing/10nascar.html?ref=sports
Some had argued that Edwards’ actions warranted a suspension.
Edwards hit Keselowski’s car, sending it airborne and propelling it into a wall. Edward “took Keselowski out,” as The New York Times put it, following an earlier crash Sunday that took Edwards out of contention.
Veteran driver Kyle Petty called the probation penalty “a laughable punishment.”
But there are many who applauded what seems to be Nascar’s call to blood this season, including the mere probation penalty for Edwards. Some argued that Edwards had merely tried to take Keselowski out of contention in the race, not wreck his car.
Keselowski wasn’t hurt in the crash, but he had asked for Nascar to penalize Edwards for his retaliatory actions.
What on earth does a probation mean when you are talking about assault with a deadly weapon? Does NASCAR not realize that that is what they are dealing with when someone intentionally drives something with that much power into another human being? So if he kills someone in the next three races, then he is trouble? But after that, it is OK?
Posted on 9th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
Neurosurgeon killed in Vintage Plane Crash, plane accident, plane crash, plane crash attorney
Federal authorities are investigating the crash of a World War II era plane into the Gulf of Mexico off Florida, killing a neurosurgeon pilot and his passenger. http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/wwii-era-plane-crashes-off-florida-coast-killing-2/19386616?icid=main|main|dl1|link4|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aolnews.com%2Fnation%2Farticle%2Fwwii-era-plane-crashes-off-florida-coast-killing-2%2F19386616
Dr. Evan Zeiger Jr., 60, was flying a single engine T-6 Texan trainer plane as part of a formation with other aircraft when he crashed into the water at about 12:30 p.m. Saturday. http://www.newsherald.com/news/rosa-82016-beach-santa.html
Zeiger is from Birmingham, Ala., and it’s believed that his passenger was his wife. They would vacation in Florida, in the area of the crash, which took place off South Walton County.
Witnesses said that Zeiger’s plane was dive bombing down toward the water, but then it didn’t pull up. It hit the water at a very high speed, creating a plume of water. No one saw any smoke or flames coming from the aircraft before it crashed.
The National Transportation Safety Board is probing the crash, and the plane’s wreckage was slated to be pulled from the water Monday.
Posted on 3rd March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized
banning texting while driving, brain injury, digital billboards, Michigan billboard ban
With state and federal laws being considered to ban motorists from using cellphones or texting, there’s a new driving distraction that’s drawing scrutiny and possible prohibition: digital billboards. The New York Times business section Tuesday did a story headlined “Roadside Marquee,” which talks about safety advocates worrying that fancy high-tech billboards will get people to take their eyes off the road and cause accidents.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/02/technology/02billboard.html?scp=1&sq;=electronic%20billboards&st;=SearchThese digital billboards change appearance and are flashy and bright, natural attention grabbers, it would seem. They are already in Times Square, and cities like Detroit. At least one group, Scenic Michigan, is trying to stop this new signage from being installed throughout that state.
And last week, Michigan legislators conducted hearings on a law, the reportedly the first of its kind, that would institute a two-year ban on construction of the digital signs. And The Times said that Minnesota is going to have hearings on a similar ban later in March.
Where’s the proof that digital signs distract drivers? Well, the Federal Highway Administration has started a study that is trying to gauge whether of not the signage is distracting. That study is set to be done this summer.
And there was one study, done in 2007 by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, that determined that digital signs were no more distracting than regular signs. But skeptics about that study’s results note that it was paid for by the billboard industry.
Some 2,000 of the 450,000 billboards in the U.S. are digitized, according to The Times.
