Car Accidents

April 24, 2015

Wareham, MA Rollover Accident Kills One, Injures Another

In a Massachusetts rollover accident, this one in Wareham, a 24-year-old Cotuit man was pronounced dead at the crash site while another man, age 20, was taken to a hospital for serious injuries. Both men were thrown from the van they were riding. Police are trying to determine which of the two men was driving the vehicle when the traffic crash happened.

It was just last month that a woman was killed in a New Bedford rollover collision. A passenger, a woman, died after being thrown from the car when the driver tried to avoid snow on the ground. The driver, a 19-year-old woman, was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Theresa Suprenant, 22, died at the Massachusetts accident scene.

March 20, 2015

Massachusetts Traffic Crashes in Somerville, Winthrop, And Agawam Cause Serious Injuries

by Altman & Altman

Several people were seriously hurt in a Somerville, MA multi-vehicle crash today. According to police, the collision occurred when a driver, age 56, suffered a medical incident, causing her to crash her vehicle into a Honda Civic, which burst into flames. The 26-year-old Medford driver of the Honda was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital for treatment of serious injuries.

The initial traffic crash caused a chain-reaction that involved three other vehicles. Fortunately, the drivers of those cars were not hurt. However, a 16-year-old pedestrian was struck by a car. He was also taken to the hospital for his injuries.

On Thursday, a 62-year-old woman was injured in a Winthrop pedestrian accident when she was struck by an alleged drunken driver who ran a red light and drove onto the sidewalk, striking the victim and a tree. Police say that they found open alcohol bottles in the vehicle, along with two children, an infant and a 6-year-old.

March 13, 2015

Older Pedestrian, Bicyclist Killed in Separate Massachusetts Truck Accidents

by Altman & Altman

A 68-year-old woman was killed on Wednesday after she was struck in a Boston-tractor trailer crash. She was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital where she died from her injuries.

No charges were filed against the 38-year-old Saugus truck driver. Witnesses say that the woman appears to have been crossing against the light. The investigation, however, is still open.

Also Wednesday, 65-year-old Marcia Deihl sustained fatal injuries in a Cambridge dump truck crash. The bicyclist was leaving a Whole Foods Market parking lot when she was struck. Diehl was pronounced dead at the Massachusetts bicycle accident site.

March 7, 2015

22-Year-Old Woman Dies in New Bedford, MA Rollover Accident Involving Snow

by Altman & Altman

Theresa Suprenant, 22, sustained fatal injuries in a New Bedford car crash over the weekend when the vehicle in which she was a passenger, a 1998 Jeep Cherokee, struck a guardrail and rolled over. Suprenant was ejected from the vehicle.

The driver of the vehicle, a 19-year-old woman, had swerved to avoid striking snow in the roadway. The Massachusetts State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section and the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit are among those investigating. No charges have been filed.

December 30, 2014

Old Cars Are Another Cause of Teen Crash Fatalities, Says Study

by Altman & Altman

According to a study authored by two researchers at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, almost 50% of teen drivers in the 15 to 17 age group that died in motor vehicle crashes from ’08 – ’12 were operating vehicles were six to eleven years old. Close to a third of those that died were riding in small autos. The results from the study, based on the government’s FARS data, were published earlier this month in Injury Prevention.

The study’s leader, IIHS Sr. VP of Research leader Anne McCartt, said that a lot of the teen drivers who are dying are doing so in the “least protective types of vehicles.” Older vehicles tend to lack the best technology when it comes to safety, such as side air bags, electronic stability control. Also, the smaller the vehicle, usually the less protection there is from impact during a collision.

It should be noted that the number one cause of fatalities among U.S. teens is car accidents. These younger drivers are three times more likely to be involved in a traffic crash.

December 19, 2014

NHTSA Reports 326 Massachusetts Traffic Deaths in 2013

by Altman & Altman

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is reporting a decline in both the number of Massachusetts motor vehicle crash fatalities as well as how many occurred in total in the U.S. According to the figures for 2013, there were 326 traffic deaths in the state last year, which is a decline from the 383 fatalities in 2012. Alcohol was a factor in 118 of the Massachusetts traffic deaths in 2013.

Nationally, the country lost 32,719 people in roadway crashes in 2013. This is also a decrease from the 33,782 traffic deaths from the year previous.

Overall, between 2012 and 2013, the U.S. saw a reduction in deaths and injuries of truck occupants, passenger car occupants, pedestrians, and young drivers, as well as in accidents where alcohol was a factor.

November 30, 2014

Today is the Day Lead Singer Injured in Massachusetts 15-Passenger Van Crash

by Altman & Altman

Steve Austin, the frontman for the band Today is the Day, was involved in a Massachusetts 15-passenger van crash over the Thanksgiving weekend. The band was getting ready to resume its tour when the group was struck by an auto that was hit by another vehicle.

On his Facebook page, Austin wrote that one of the cars hit the side of their vehicle, causing the 15-passenger van to spin some 180 degrees and then flip over. Austin says that he and a friend were thrown “super hard” in the vehicle, as glass burst everywhere, sparks flew, and transmission fluid poured in. The two of them climbed out of the van as soon as it came to a stop.

An ambulance took the men to the hospital where Trevor was treated for cuts and bruises. He claims that the drivers of the other two vehicles deny that they were at fault.

November 30, 2014

Airborne Sheet of Ice Crashes into Family’s Car; Causes Heavy Damage

by Altman & Altman

A mother and her two young daughters were involved in a scary accident yesterday on Route 111 in Hudson, New Hampshire.

Lisa Beauchemin, 35, was driving her Volvo wagon Saturday when a sheet of ice flew off a white van and shattered the Volvo’s windshield. The ice was so forceful, it nearly penetrated the passenger’s compartment, police said. Despite being showered with shards of broken glass, Beauchemin and her daughters were uninjured.

With the first big storm of the season, Massachusetts State Police are urging drivers to clean their cars completely of snow and ice prior to hitting the roads.

Accumulating layers of snowfall and ice on top of cars is especially dangerous because it can slide off and blind you or go through a fellow drivers’ windshield-as was the case yesterday. Additionally, state officials caution drivers to take extra precautions when there’s snow on the ground, such as driving more slowly and keeping a safe distance between vehicles.

The U.S. Department of Transportation reported that nearly one quarter of all car accidents (1.5 million) in the United States are caused by weather-winter is unsurprisingly the most dangerous season. Winter weather including snow, sleet, and frigid temperatures contribute to hazardous road conditions. Ice and black ice are products of wet weather and freezing temperatures are the main culprits behind the majority of serious weather-related incidents.
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November 19, 2014

NHTSA Wants a Nationwide Recall of Autos With Takata Driver’s Side Frontal Airbags

by Altman & Altman

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it wants a nationwide recall of vehicles outfitted with certain side frontal side air bags manufactured by Takata. The move comes after the regulator decided that the manufacturer is not acting swiftly enough to expand the recall of defective air bags that may rupture when deployed.

Already there have been five deaths, four in the U.S., linked to the faulty auto safety device, which may shoot out shrapnel when rupturing. Today, two U.S. Senators said there might even be a sixth death linked to the deadly air bags. All of the air bag deaths occurred in Honda vehicles.

A national recall would broaden what has to date been regional action involving 4.1 million vehicles in states that are humid and hot, which is where the safety devices are more likely to fail. Automakers involved in that initiative included Mazda, Honda, Ford, BMW, and Chrysler. NHTSA said that unless Takata and the car manufacturers swiftly agree to the wider recall, it will use its authority to make sure that such an initiative happens.

October 28, 2014

Man Injured When Cement Beam Falls off Truck

by Altman & Altman

The driver of an SUV was taken to the hospital last week after several cement beams fell off of a tractor-trailer truck and onto his car.

Vidon George, the driver of that SUV, said he was approximately 30 feet away from the truck when he noticed the restraint harnesses giving way. The beams landed on the hood of George’s Honda Pilot, crushing its front end.

“I just tried to brake and I could see this is going to come and hit my car for sure and bam, in a few seconds everything was done,” George, 40, said in a statement to WCVB. “It happened so fast. My hands were on the steering wheel and the airbag exploded or deployed. My body aches because of that huge impact,” he said.

George, a married father of three was en route to work. He was luckily able to open the car door and walk away not seriously injured, however he is being treated for bruises. Investigators are currently looking into how the accident happened.
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