Florida Accident Attorney Blog

A West Palm Beach, Florida trucker escaped death but one of his dogs perished following an explosive crash between his fuel-carrying tanker truck and a broken-down car, which occurred on Interstate 95 on Monday. Following the accident, a Miami Dade County man was arrested for leaving the scene of a crash involving damage and injury and driving without a driver's license.

According to news reports and the Florida Highway Patrol, the car truck accident occurred in the early morning hours of June 22. A tanker truck carrying 8,000 gallons of gasoline was traveling from Fort Lauderdale, driven by West Palm Beach resident Jimmy Hill, 63. Hill's truck came upon a disabled station wagon on the highway operated by Roberto Antonio Velasquez, 22, of the Miami-Dade area.

Hill stated that he could not avoid the broken-down car on I-95. Velasquez reported that he and a passenger fled when they saw the tanker truck approaching; he and his passenger were picked up and driven south by another motorist. The vehicle's owner was traced and Velasquez was arrested for leaving the scene and driving without a driver's license; a Palm Beach County Circuit judge ordered him held in lieu of bail. The Florida tanker truck crash into the station wagon created a horrific fireball that was seen around the country, as national news aired footage from the crash scene.

The tanker truck driver, Hill, suffered minor burns on his arm following the crash. He managed to save one of his two Springer Spaniel dogs who were traveling with him, but the body of the second dog was later found by rescuers and is believed to have been killed as a result of the crash.

A Florida injury lawyer works with bereaved families involved in vehicle accidents where personal injury and/or death occur, due to the negligence or recklessness of another motorist.

Miami-Dade man held in tanker crash
MiamiHerald.com June 24, 2009

Trucker worried about his missing dog
WPTV.com June 22, 2009

Related Web Resources

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)

FMCSA: Share the Road Safely Program

A news source reports that a Plantation, Florida child was saved and brought to the hospital after falling into a swimming pool.

According to the news report, the swimming pool accident occurred early Saturday. The Plantation Fire Department was called to a home where a 3-year-old had fallen into the pool. The child had been pulled from the pool by the time rescue workers arrived and was breathing and conscious. The toddler was brought to Plantation General Hospital to be examined, and initial reports indicated the child would be OK.

Florida Pool Accidents and Drownings
An experienced Florida accidental drowning lawyer stays up-to-date on state and federal safety laws that the owners of public swimming pools must abide by. The recently enacted Virginia Graeme Baker Act requires the owners of all Florida public pools and spas to put safety covers on drains to prevent small children from being sucked in and injured or drowned.

In addition, the owners of private swimming pools may be subject to Florida premises liability law if someone is injured or drowns on their property. Safety advocacy groups urge all private swimming pool owners to review safety recommendations and install fencing, drain covers, and other safety equipment, so their pools are safe for children and adults. It is also recommended that an adult supervise children in the pool at all times. Drowning is the leading cause of accidental death for children younger than age 5 in Florida.

Child rescued after falling in pool at Plantation home
South Florida Sun-Sentinel June 20, 2009

Related Web Resources

Preventing Tragedies:
Broward County and Palm Beach County Pool Accidents

Virginia Graeme Baker Act:
Information for Compliance with the 2007 Pool & Spa Safety Act

A recent national survey on road rage shows that New York City has replaced Miami, Florida as home to the nation's most aggressive and angriest drivers. (Miami had the dubious distinction of topping the list for four years.) But that doesn't mean the city is a haven for safe drivers: Miami was voted the place where people are most likely to read, shave, or apply makeup while driving.

As Miami accident lawyers know, the personal injury caused by distracted driving is no laughing matter.

NHTSA categorizes "distracted driving" with drowsy driving, and reports that "nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within 3 seconds before the event." NHTSA lists cell phone use and drowsiness as major causes of driver distraction. It is unknown how many Miami car accidents are caused by distracted driving behaviors such as those reported in the survey.

NHTSA reports that applying makeup and reading while driving increases drivers' chances of being involved in motor vehicle crashes by 3 times. Simply reaching for a moving object while driving increases the risk of a crash or near-crash by 9 times. (Source: NHTSA Press Release, "NHTSA, Virginia TechTransportation Institute Release Findings of Breakthrough Research on Real-World Driver Behavior, Distraction and Crash Factors," April 20, 2006).

The survey, commissioned by the Affinion Group, a marketing consulting firm, reports that Miami had dropped to number 7 among cities that experience the worst road rage. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) makes a distinction between "aggressive driving" and "road rage," stating that "aggressive driving is a traffic offense; road rage is a criminal offense." (Source: "Welcome to Stop Aggressive Driving," NHTSA.gov).

New York drivers named most aggressive, angry in U.S.
Reuters, Yahoo! News, June 16, 2009

Miami slips from worst drivers list
South Florida Business Journal, June 16, 2009

Related Web Resources

AutoVantage Road Rage Survey

NHTSA: Drowsy & Distracted Driving

Recent Lee County, Florida teenage car crashes tragically underscore the hazards involved when young, inexperienced drivers get behind the wheel.

In April, a 16-year-old, male South Fort Myers High School student was ejected from a car in an alcohol-related accident in Estero, and later died at the hospital. The 15-year-old girl driver will likely face DUI manslaughter charges in the boy's death.

In early June, within a 5-day span, again in the Estero, Florida area, two serious teenage car driving accidents left two youths with serious injuries and one dead. An 18-year-old Estero High School student was ejected from his pickup truck while speeding down a dirt road, cracking vertebrae. Days later, a 17-year-old male driver lost control of his car on Mountain View Drive in Bonita Springs, overturning the vehicle and ejecting his 16-year-old male passenger; the teen driver suffered serious personal injury and his young passenger was killed.

Florida car accident lawyers are familiar with the laws designed to keep everyone who shares our highways and roads safe. Public awareness safety initiatives such as the Florida Click It or Ticket campaign are designed to increase seat belt use. Teens involved in the Lee County, Florida fatal accidents were not wearing seat belts.

Teen Driving Risks and Statistics
According to a recent report released by the AAA, though teen driver deaths are on the decline, the people more apt to be hurt or killed in a teen car crash are passengers, pedestrians, cyclists, and other motorists. According to the report, which examined U.S. driving accidents involving teens ages 15, 16 and 17 between the years 1998 and 2007:

-Motor vehicle crashes with drivers ages 15 to 17 resulted in 28,138 people being killed.

-Of the total fatalities, 37% were teen drivers -- 10,388 teens lost their lives and their futures in auto accidents.

-For every teen driver killed, two other people are killed as a result of vehicle crashes with teens: During the study years, 17,750 passengers, other motorists over 18, and non-motorists involved in teen driving accidents were killed.

-The more teens in a vehicle, the more likely an accident is to occur.

PHOTOS: Days after horrific accidents, school officials ponder how to get students to buckle up
NaplesNews.com June 8, 2009

Estero High tragedy: Two separate accidents take life of one teen, paralyze another
NaplesNews.com June 7, 2009

AAA Report: Deadly Teen Car Crashes On the Decline
WCAV.tv Feb. 27, 2009

Related Web Resources
AAA Report: Teen Crashes: Everyone Is At Risk
People Fatally-Injured In Motor Vehicle Crashes Involving 15- to 17-Year-Olds:
2009 Update

Allstate Insurance: Start the Conversation -- Teaching Your Teen to Drive
Making Your Teen a “Smart Driver”

A South Florida boating accident that cost a Naples grandmother her eye and caused other permanent injuries is heading to court.

According to news reports, Audrey Decker, 64, was taking a sunset cruise with her husband in their Boston Whaler when she fell overboard and was struck by the boat's propeller. Mrs. Decker was taken by medical helicopter to Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers, Florida, for emergency treatment for serious damage to her face, arm, and breast.

A Naple news source reports that in the decade since the pleasure boat accident occurred on Lake Sapphire, Mrs. Decker's serious personal injury has required more than 40 surgeries. A civil lawsuit filed in 2002 alleges that the boat and motor manufacturers are liable, and that a propeller guard could have prevented her injuries. Mrs. Decker and her husband are scheduled to appear in Collier Circuit Court this week, for what is believed to be this court's oldest unresolved civil lawsuit.

Florida Boat Accident Fatality and Injury Statistics
A Florida boat accident attorney works with families when a loved one suffers injury or dies in a boating accident that could have been prevented. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, more than a million boats are registered in the state of Florida (commercial and recreational craft), with another estimated 350,000 unregistered craft using Florida's waterways. Fatality and injury statistics:

• Seventy-seven (77) people died in Florida boating accidents in 2007.
• Falling overboard was the main cause of fatal accidents (38%) and drowning was the main cause of death (55%).
• 90% of the fatalities were men.
• 56% of fatal accidents involved boats of less than 17 feet in length.
• 376 injuries were reported for 2007 involving 949 vessels and 14 swimmers.

Lost face: Scarred and scared, boating accident victim heads to court in Naples
NaplesNews.com June 6, 2009

Related Web Resources

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission: Boating Safety

Florida Boating License and Boat Safety Course: Boating Accidents

In an agreement with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Mattel and its subsidiary Fisher-Price will pay $2.3 million in civil penalties for toys made in China containing high levels of lead paint. Lead paint has been shown to cause injury when ingested and is banned in the United States. This defective products penalty is the highest of its kind imposed by the CPSC.

The Mattel civil penalty sheds more light over recent concerns by Congress that some Chinese-made products don't meet United States standards for consumer safety. Defective products originating in China from pet food to baby formula were pulled from U.S. shelves and came under FDA scrutiny when they were shown to contain ingredients that may be harmful to animals and people. The Mattel penalty involves importing and distributing non-compliant toys containing lead paint, including Sarge cars and Barbie accessories.

Experienced Florida product liability lawyers know how to interpret federal and state laws designed to protect consumers from faulty or defective products.

Other Defective Chinese Products: Faulty Drywall in Florida Construction
Earlier this year, we wrote about how some faulty construction materials made in China may be affecting people's health and the air quality in their homes. (See South Florida Construction Product Liability: Faulty Chinese Drywall to Be Tested.)

Senators are seeking funding to continue studying this problem in Florida construction liability and in home building around the country.

Mattel to Pay $2.3 Million Penalty for Toy Hazard
Bloomberg.com June 5, 2009

Senators Seek Funds for Chinese Drywall Study
Environmental Protection June 5, 2009

Related Web Resources

Mattel, Fisher-Price to Pay $2.3 Million Civil Penalty for Violating Federal Lead Paint Ban Penalty is highest ever for CPSC regulated product violations (CPSC press release)

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)

Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act

Cape Coral motorcycle police officer Damien Garcia, 26, remains in critical condition at Lee Memorial Hospital as a result of serious injuries sustained in a Florida SUV motorcycle crash that occurred Tuesday afternoon.

According to news reports, the accident occurred June 2 after 3 p.m. at Cultural Park Boulevard and Southeast Van Loon Terrace, where the roads were wet with rain. The Florida Highway Patrol reported that the SUV driver, identified as Josephine M. Pierce, 51, of Cape Coral, Florida, collided with Officer Garcia's motorcycle as she attempted to make a left-hand turn across the southbound lanes of Cultural Park. The FHP determined that alcohol was not a factor in this serious Fort Myers area motorcycle accident. Charges are pending investigation.

Florida Motorcycle Accident Fatalities
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a report on motorcycle accident deaths for 2007. Nationally, that year a total of 5,154 motorcyclists were killed -- a 7 percent increase over the 4,837 motorcyclists who lost their lives in accidents the previous year. Another 103,000 motorcyclists suffered personal injury in traffic accidents during 2007. (Source: NHTSA Traffic Safety Facts - 2007 Data: Motorcycles.)

NHTSA reports that motorcycle fatalities in Florida are on the rise: 566 motorcyclists died in 2007 -- that's up from 365 in 2003 (see link to report below under Resources).

Florida accident lawyers are familiar with the traffic laws designed to keep everyone safe on our roads and highways. Motorcyclists are vulnerable when traffic accidents with cars, trucks and SUVs occur due their exposure to other vehicles and the road itself.

Cape Coral officer critical after crash
News-Press.com June 3, 2009

Related Web Resources

NHTSA: Traffic Safety Facts: Florida 2003-2007

Florida Highway Patrol

A Pompano Beach child celebrating his ninth birthday suffered serious burns at Palm Beach International Raceway, when the go-kart he was driving went out of control, flipped, and burst into flames. A news report stated that the child was trapped in the burning vehicle for about 30 seconds until bystanders rescued him. His nylon suit was not fire resistant, and the child was driving his own go-kart when the vehicle accident occurred.

The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported that although all parents are required to sign a waiver before their children use the kart track, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office was investigating this case. Following the accident, the boy was reported to be in critical condition at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Burn Center

It is unclear whether Florida premises liability laws may come to bear on this case. The same news source reported that no track officials responded on scene immediately when the accident occurred. In addition, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) was unsure whether the go-kart would fall under its jurisdiction for product liability; the CPSC monitors product safety for thousands of consumer products.

The CPSC issued a report on go kart safety in 2000, which estimated that 113 children under age 15 died as a result of go-kart accidents from 1990 to 1999. In the year 1999, an estimated 12,600 children under 15 were treated in hospitals for go-kart accidents. Most of the accidents involved boys age 8 or older and were a result of collision with other vehicles or with stationary objects, loss of stability, or falling from the vehicle. (Source: Go - Kart Related Injuries & Deaths to Children, CPSC, Sept. 2000.)

Since 1983, at least 9 drivers have died from crashes at Palm Beach International Raceway in Jupiter, Florida, which was once known as Moroso Motorsports Park. The track draws in tourists, racing fans, and other spectators who come to see drag racing, drift car racing, and other competitive racing events. Karting "arrive & drive packages" are offered to the public as a recreational activity.

Pompano Beach boy burned in Palm Beach County go-kart crash
South Florida Sun Sentinel May 27, 2009

Related Web Resources

Palm Beach International Raceway

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission