At least four people were seriously injured in a multi-car pileup on Interstate 15, according to recent reports. The accident took place near State Route 56 and involved as many as six vehicles, two of which were said to have overturned.
Four victims, one of them said to have sustained major trauma, were taken to area hospitals. There is no word on the condition of any of the victims.
Very few accidents involve more than two vehicles. However, these accidents are often some of the worst in terms of physical injury. According to the United States Department of Transportation, fewer than seven percent of all crashes in 2008 involved more than two vehicles. However, the majority of these crashes involved high speeds on straight roads. This leads to the conclusion that multiple car crashes are much more prevalent on high-speed highways such as interstates than on surface roads.
Speed as a contributing factor to multi-car crashes means that the death rate for these crashes will be higher than for other types of crashes at slower speeds. There is an additional factor that makes multi-car crashes so deadly, as well: the fact that a victim may be “hit” multiple times and from different angles. Someone in a car at the initial point of impact may be struck from behind then from the side, for example. This could cause the victim to sustain several types of injury, including whiplash.
Furthermore, it can be difficult to establish liability in a multi-car accident. When many vehicles are involved, the levels of liability for each driver can be confusing. Sometimes, it is necessary to hire a professional accident reconstruction expert to determine who was truly at fault.
If you have been the victim of a multi-car accident, it is important for you to contact a personal injury attorney like Dan Gilleon of San Diego immediately. Insurance companies and the attorneys for other drivers will be hard at work to limit their clients’ exposure. If you are going to collect compensation for your medical bills, pain and suffering and other costs, you should act quickly.
Contact Dan Gilleon today for a free consultation on your case. With the help of this experienced personal injury lawyer, you may be able to recover money to pay for your injury expenses.