mmarshall

And my prayers go out for the recovery of the bad eye.

mmarshall

I assume that, by your user-call sign, you are a trucker yourself. Your points are well-taken....and I agree with some of them. But, if any witnesses got the truck's license number, serial number, or the company that owns it, I think that company or individual should be responsible for this man's medical bills, vehicle repair, or even a comparable vehicle replacement if it is totalled. The man's auto insurance company (and maybe health insurance) may cover the immediate bills, but you can bet they will go after the owner of the truck to recover their own costs if it can be determined.

tex2670

So--you think that a 7 inch solid piece of ice the length of a truck weighs less than the driver himself?

Och

iTrader: (3)

trukn1

Absolutely. Have been a long distance trucker for the past 8 years and normally average about 125K miles a year driving, except for a brief period in 09 when I was laid off due to the company I was working for "downsizing" their work force. I absolutely DO agree with what you have said here. My point was if no one stopped him, got his attention, etc., that driver NEVER knew that anything BEHIND him even took place. I am not discounting that some liability should be assumed. At the very least BOTH parties share a degree of blame in this incident(truck driver needed to be alittle more vigilant,, car driver IMO was following WAYYY to closely). I am not absolving the truck driver of blame completely. Just trying to get people to look at this from a total 360 degree view.

1. You misunderstood what my point was. I was saying that with a vehicle 13'6" high there is no way that anyone will be able to clear the top of it in the normal course of picking up a loaded/empty trailer from a business or a yard. As much as if may seem convenient to do so, storage space for a ladder just does not exist on a truck. My response was in reference to why it is dangerous for driver to attempt to climb on top of a trailer, even if it was possible.

2. A piece of ice 53' long and 7" thick will require one heck of a jolt to even dislodge from the top of a trailer. Air alone, driving down the highway, will NOT raise the entire piece, that large, airborn. If anything, it will break off in pieces. And for the record, a SOLID piece of ice that spans the length and width of a trailer and as thick as you say WILL weigh at least as much as the driver himself if not more(depends on the size of the driver).


**Sigh,, an all too common sight, for me when snow happens. Who is to blame of assume responsibility when that stuff comes flying off of your cars and goes airborn DIRECTLY into MY windshield, all because someone had the notion that cleaning off a car entailed clearing the windows and lights for visibility. Height difference is key here. From a truck, objects flying off the top will go REALLY high airborn before they come crashing down. From a car, objects flying off the top will go about as high as the top of my windshield before impact. This is a danger that is shared by both cars AND trucks. I normally try to stay away from people who drive like the pic above.

I8ABMR

In my professional opinion that driver probably has a orbital blow out fracture,corneal abrasion, lid lacerations, 8 ball hyphema, possible torn iris, traumatic cataract, vitreous heme, and most likely a solid retinal detachment . Its possible for the eye to recover but I would guess that he would be lucky if his best corrected visual acuity was 20/40 - 20/60. Its gonna be a long road to recovery for that eye.



sorry to get geeky, but its what I do

IS-SV

Makes me want to wear a full face helmet in my car sometimes....

Och

iTrader: (3)

I think trukn is right in many ways. Don't follow a truck too close, especially during snowy conditions. I think minivan moms who don't clear the snow from the top of their minivans/suvs are far more dangerous.

I8ABMR

frankly in this case it would have helped. The nose and the brow would have taken the brunt of the impact force along with the mask

NINEZeRO

why summer?

IS-SV

Rocks, fumes, uncovered and unsecured cargo flying off.

MrG4Life

iTrader: (14)

Tony I'm glad you chimed in on this one because I've always wondered if there is anyway possible that the operator of a tractor-trailer for instance can clear snow. From my recollection, I don't recall seeing way for the driver to make his/her way to the trailer to clear snow. I would think that there are trunk stops out there that gives the driver the ability to safely clear snow somehow. Not sure if something like that exists.

Sadly truckers are not the only ones not at fault. Many drivers especially the owners of suv's and minivans have snow and even worst, sheets of ice fly off the top of their vehicles.

Faymester

I'm always warry of semi trucks w. trailers, regardless of their load; the load is supposed to be secured, but you never know how well or what could happen.

I watch out for that too ... this is one ove those things that really bothers me (especially when they've left the snow up there long enough to get crusty and hard)

trukn1

Now,, now,, expand that thinking a little. Rocks are kicked up by everyone. I have a crack in my windshield now from some ya-vo in a Mitsubishi who got impatient and passed me on the shoulder, kicking the gravel up and into my windshield. He was a little ticked that I did not yield to him as HE was coming onto the highway. Normally, I just switch lanes to allow people to get on the highway, but when I don't have the opportunity to do so, then they have to yield, as I already have the right of way. Fumes come from everything,,both cars and trucks. Just like you would put your car thru a regular service interval, trucks are REQUIRED to maintain one as well and have a record of that service interval kept on hand at the facility. Not sure if you know it or not, the trucking industry has beem focused HARD on lowering emissions from trucks for the past few years now. All trucks built after 2007 were required to meet STRINGENT emissions regs and the industry also required these newer trucks to run on Ultra Low Sulfer Diesel. That kills alot of that black soot in the air coming out of the stacks on a truck. If you take a few moments to glance at a few trucks, you will actually see that the smoke is now more white, if any at all. Uncovered cargo, on flatbed trucks, is mandated by the individual customer who orders that cargo as well as what it is. Obviously a driver with a load of sheet rock is gonna cover it to protect it from the elements. Not all customers WANT their load covered. Unsecured cargo,,,this goes a little far. Any cargo on the back of a truck,particularly a flatbed truck, HAS to be secured by law/regulation. The penalties for not doing so are VERY steep if caught, not to mention the logistical nightmare it can cause if an accident forms b/c of it. Those tickets START at $500, and only go higher. Realistically, things break and stuff comes loose; is a fact of life. I would REALLY suggest you take a little more time to watch the actions of a trucker from a new perspective to gain a better understanding.

IS-SV

I'll keep it shorter and to the point.

Rocks - more likely to get kicked up with higher frequency and force by large trucks versus a passenger car.
Fumes - emit far more pollution than any legal and registered passenger car of the same vintage. It's wonderful that the diesel trucks now run cleaner than ever and it's about time, but they are not expected to reach passenger car standards anytime soon and that is not necessary to have a big postive impact versus the past gross polluter fleets
Debris - from cargo/loads, yea stuff happens that's for sure. Yes we know the laws and why they exist too.

I would REALLY suggest that you take a little more time to see why that given a choice it's often better to not follow large trucks when other space on the road is safely available. I would also REALLY suggest that you realize some of us have actually taken the time to watch the action of truckers. I view the actions of most truck drivers very highly. But that doesn't change the fact that the rocks, fumes and debris from loads (legal or not) can impact passenger cars following.

I'm not getting down on truckers, they are critical to the US economy and as I said I view most of their driving with very high regard. My only point is given a choice, following a truck has hazards for passenger vehicles, that's all.

Btw in my college days I drove a diesel truck 3 long nights per week, excellent experience for me. And I REALLY hope that you can keep bringing information on trucking which is certainly valuable to many of us, without a soapbox one-sided essay maybe.