Negligent Drivers on U.S. 50 May Have Caused Multiple-Vehicle Crash
An overturned large Budget rental truck, along with multiple other vehicles, brought traffic to a halt along Sacramento’s El Dorado Freeway on June 7. The multiple-vehicle crash happened along westbound U.S. 50 just west of the Stockton Boulevard off-ramp around 7:33 in the morning. Upon arrival at the accident scene, officers with the California Highway Patrol (CHP) discovered that the accident had involved an ambulance, the Budget rental truck, a Cadillac and a white work truck. Five individuals were taken to the hospital following the collision with what were described as minor injuries.
Live News Cam Footage Shows Accident as It Happened
Live cam video footage supplied by KCRA 3 showed a white pickup truck cutting across three lanes of traffic and crashing into a private ambulance entering the right-hand lane, which may have been involved in its own accident. The ambulance struck the work truck in front, which caused it to crash into the Budget rental truck in the next lane. The rental truck spun around and overturned onto its side, blocking most of the lanes of traffic. A Cadillac, which had been traveling in front of the work truck was also struck and left its lane, sustaining major rear-end damage.
Overturned Rental Truck Blocks Traffic
The rental truck lay on its side blocking all but the slow lane. According to the police report, the driver of the semi exited the truck and was yelling at the ambulance driver, who was trapped inside their emergency vehicle. No patients were being transported by the ambulance at the time. Problems escalated when first responders with the Sacramento Fire Department and tow trucks had difficulty reaching the accident site due to backed-up, heavy traffic.
SigAlert Issued to Warn Drivers
Authorities shut down all traffic by issuing a SigAlert, and the fire department reached the scene by going the wrong way on Stockton Boulevard. By around 8:00 a.m., the fire department responders had arrived and were busy extricating passengers from their vehicles. At least some of the vehicles sustained major damage, including one with a broken suspension. The CHP is investigating the crash to determine how it happened and to assign fault.
Traffic Accident Injuries Are Often Caused by Someone Else
Unfortunately, many traffic accidents that result in serious injuries are out of our control. When you happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, you can end up suffering an injury caused by a negligent driver. When this happens, the next thing you know is you’re unable to work, medical bills begin piling up, and you’re in the hospital or at home facing a possibly long recovery.
Determining Fault in an Accident
When multiple vehicles are involved in a collision, such as the overturned truck, ambulance, and others, it is the injury attorney’s job to collect evidence that points toward the at-fault party/parties, so the client can obtain fair compensation. In some cases, there may be more than one negligent driver that is involved. Our investigators:
- Check the driving records of those involved in an accident to see if they have previous instances of collisions or infractions.
- Perform accident reconstruction, which basically replays the collision, demonstrating how it happened.
- Interview the witnesses and take statements.
- Check nearby surveillance cameras to see if the collision was captured on video.
- Examine the police report for mistakes.
Our injury attorneys use this gathered evidence to construct a case that supports our client’s compensation claim.
Sacramento Car Accident Lawyer
I am Ed Smith, a Sacramento car accident lawyer. The cost of injuries in a traffic accident may be recoverable with the help of an injury attorney. Contact me for free, friendly advice on whether you may be able to place a claim against the at-fault party at (916) 921-6400 or (800) 404-5400. An online contact form is available also.
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We’ve helped Sacramentans and other Northern Californians to obtain the compensation they deserve in all varieties of car accidents, pedestrian and bicyclist claims, wrongful deaths, and others since 1982.
Photo attribution: https://pixabay.com/photos/car-accident-broken-glass-splatter-337764/
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