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A car accident in a Massachusetts suburb killed a well known Boston doctor when her car veered into oncoming traffic and hit another car. The driver, Dr. Phyllis Jen, was killed, and police are questioning whether Dr. Jen was using her BlackBerry at the time of the car crash.

Speed and alcohol did not appear to be factors in the auto accident, and the driver and passenger of the other vehicle, a large SUV, were not seriously injured. Although Massachusetts has not experienced as many car crashes related to texting or cell phone use as some states, lawmakers are considering a ban on wireless handsets to protect drivers.

According to a recent study conducted by Harris Interactive, 92% of Americans believe driving while texting or emailing as dangerous as driving while under the influence of alcohol.

Cell Phone Misuse May Have Killed Boston Physician, InformationWeek.com, April 23, 2009 Continue reading

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The Boston Globe reports that a tanker truck in Revere flipped in a rotary early yesterday morning, spilling most of its 10,000 gallons of fuel into a storm drain and a creek. No one was hurt in the truck accident, but the tanker was punctured in six places, according to Revere’s fire chief, who added that the driver may been going too fast around the rotary.

The truck was traveling from Revere to Leominster, and the company could not be reached for comment. However, a search on safersys.org by a Metro reported revealed that the company has not had another truck crashes in the past two years. It also received a satisfactory rating when federal inspectors reviewed the company in July 2000.

Emergency responders were not able to stop the flow of heating oil into the storm drain and Diamond Creek, so it may require an environmental cleanup crew since the creek flows into Pine River and empties into the ocean.

Tanker spills 10,000 gallons of heating oil in Revere, Boston Globe, April 20, 2009 Continue reading

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An early morning car accident in Marion, Massachusetts, on April 10 sent two people to the hospital. According to police, Jonathan Fonseca, 20, was driving west on Route 6 when he hit the curb and a utility pole, breaking the pole and causing it to fall across Route 6. The damage from the car crash (a broken utility pole and downed wires) forced authorities to close Route 6 for nine hours.

Fonseca and his passenger, 18-year-old Michelle Rico, were flown to the hospital by Med Flight helicopter. Their injuries were considered serious, according to the Marion police chief. As of last week, Ricco was in fair condition, and Fonseca had been treated and released from the hospital.

The Massachusetts State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstructions Section is investigating the auto accident along with the Marion Police. They believe that speed may have been a factor.

Two local people seriously injured in car accident, WickedLocal.com, April 14, 2009 Continue reading

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On Saturday night, a state police trooper was hit by a car while on a detail in a damaged area of Boston’s Mass Pike. The area was damaged in an earlier traffic accident that occurred around 11am that morning.

The driver of a 2009 Toyota Camry dropped a “large piece of equipment” which hit one of the panels at the D entrance of the Mass Pike on Congress Street around 9pm.

According to state police Lt. Eric Anderson, the injured trooper was rushed to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was listed in serious condition with non-life-threatening injuries.

The driver of the Toyota Camry, a 24-year-old man from Hyde Park, was arrested on marijuana charges, and the car accident remains under investigation.

State trooper at Pike ramp struck by car, Boston Herald, April 12, 2009
Trooper Struck By Vehicle in Boston, WBZTV.com, April 11, 2009 Continue reading

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Countless studies have confirmed the link between cell phone use and car crashes. One estimate prepared by the Harvard Center of Risk Analysis states that more than 2,600 people die from cell phone-relatd auto accidents.

According to CellularNews.com, the United States and Sweden are the only two industrialized nations that do not prohibit cell phone use while driving (though many allow it with a hands-free set). Many states, including Massachusetts, have discussed the possibility of banning drivers from using cell phones on the road. But aside from fining drivers for violating the ban, there seems to be little that law enforcement officials can do to prevent cell phone use.

This gave Fred Wenz, a UPS deliveryman, an idea. Wenze formed Try Safety First LLC with John Fischer and the pair has filed a provisional patent for an owner compliance key (OCK). The device will block the incoming and outgoing radio signal to and from cell phones for a five-foot radius – preventing the person in the driver’s seat from making or receiving calls. The OCK could be used on a secondary set of keys (say, for a teen driver) or on the primary set of keys. The company is in the funding stages.

Hang up and drive, Enquirer.com, April 9, 2009 Continue reading

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Governor Deval Patrick and a blue-ribbon panel sought a $100,000 cap on damages paid for public transit accidents, but before the vote, the Massachusetts Senate’s Ways and Means Committee added loophole exempting cases that involve “serious bodily injury or death.”

Joe Pesaturo, a spokesperson for the MBTA, said the transit authority has been seeking such a cap since 1985. He estimates that such caps could save the transit authority 20 to 25 percent in personal injury-related claims.

Right now the MBTA is appealing two judgments totaling $20 million. One case involves a woman who was hit by a bus while standing at a bus stop in Somerville. Another involves a woman who lost a leg following a bus accident in 2004.

However, Senator Steven Panagiotakos, a personal injury lawyer in Lowell, claims that mass transit agencies should not be exempt from paying high liability awards because of the dangerous nature of transportation.

“If they’re getting hit with punitive damages, it’s a sign it’s a pretty serious matter to begin with,” said Panagiotakos. “So maybe it will get them to fall in line better.”

Senate Weakens Reform In Transportation Bill, The Boston Channel, April 3, 2009 Continue reading

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A truck carrying several cars crashed into several vehicles and a bookstore on the Angeles Crest Highway, so authorities have enacted a 90-day ban on big rigs, which took effect at midnight. Signs now warn drivers that trucks with five or more axles are not allowed on the highway.

The Massachusetts trucker, 43-year-old Marcos Costa, had evidently ignored warning signs and used Angeles Forest Highway, which already prohibits semi-tractor trailers. The highway’s steep grade caused the truck to burn out its brakes, killing two people when it pushed through the intersection and crushed a red Ford sedan. The trucker and twelve other people were injured. Three were in critical condition.

Costa was arrested on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter and reckless driving. He has been charged with two felony counts of manslaughter relating to the truck crash.

Big rig ban in effect after fatal crash, ABCLocal.com, April 6, 2009 Continue reading

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Last week, a 55-year-old pedestrian from Harwich was hit by a truck on Route 28 in West Yarmouth. David C. Nickerson is in critical condition at Massachusetts General Hospital after sustaining life-threatening injuries. Yarmouth Fire and Rescue took Nickerson by ambulance to the Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School baseball fields, and he was flown by MedFlight helicopter to Mass General in Boston.

According to Yarmouth police, Jason Yanna, 23, was driving the white Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck that hit Nickerson. Police do not consider drugs or alcohol to be a factor in the accident. No charges have been filed against the driver, but the pedestrian accident is still under investigation.

Anyone who may have witnessed the crash or have knowledge of the operator or pedestrian’s activities before the crash is urged to contact Patrol Investigator Gibbons at 508-775-0445 extension 3613.

Harwich man critical after Yarmouth accident, Cape Cod Times, April 1, 2009 Continue reading

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In Northwestern Massachusetts, a snowmobile accident in Adams killed one man and seriously injured another. The crash was reported at 12:19 Saturday morning and claimed the life of Michael J. Bresett, 42. Ryan Ziemalak was injured, but the 22-year-old’s condition was upgraded from serious to stable over the weekend.

State law requires snowmobile riders to wear an approved helmet. According to the Massachusetts Environmental Police, neither man was wearing head protection at the time of the snowmobile accident, which was Berkshire County’s second fatal snowmobile crash this year. The law also prohibits riders from “traveling on a public way,” which the pair were doing at the time of the crash.

Police do not know which man was driving the snowmobile, and the accident is under investigation.

Snowmobile victim failed to wear helmet, Berkshire Eagle, April 6, 2009
1 dead, 1 injured in Mass. snowmobile crash, Boston Herald, April 5, 2009 Continue reading

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In Massachusetts, a new initiative called Road Respect Mobilization is currently in effect statewide. State and local police are working to curtail road rage thought grants from the state Executive Office of Public Safety. The grants range up to $2,000 and cover overtime for radar patrols so that officers can monitor unsafe lane changing, speeding, tailgating, and red light violations. The program runs through April 26.

According to Norton police spokesman Lt. Todd Jackson, “aggressive driving is the cause of many crashes. Our community has seen an increase in incidents involving this behavior, such as ‘road rage’ incidents.”

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration states that around 6.3 million auto accidents occur every year in the United States. Although the number of accidents related to aggressive driving and road rage is unknown, it is suspected that many of those crashes were related to angry or frustrated drivers.

If you are confronted by an angry driver, police recommend that you avoid eye contact and try to get safely out of the way. If the incident escalates and becomes serious, dial 911.

Look for more patrols to combat aggressiveness, The Sun Chronicle, April 6, 2009 Continue reading

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