A collision with a parked car usually isn’t that serious. Many a first accident has happened in a parking lot. But when the parked car is a semi, physics takes over and the damage can be deadly, like it was in this recent case reported by WWL.
The police say that two women were driving on Chef Menteur Highway in the wee hours of the morning. For reasons unknown, they swerved off the road and hit the back of a parked 18-wheeler trailer.
The crash was so severe that investigators weren’t able to tell which of the victims was the driver. One was killed in the crash and the other is in stable condition. It is unknown why the trailer was parked on the side of the road.
The huge weight of these vehicles makes hitting them like striking a building, but there is another factor that makes it worse. The height of the trailer can let the front of a car slip underneath far enough that the trailer hits the windshield directly. This bypasses many safety features and creates deadly situations like this one.
If you’ve ever wondered why that extra bar hangs off the back of a semi trailer, now you know that it’s just not for stepping up to open the door. It’s to help keep cars that rear-end 18-wheelers from slipping under the back.
Questions?Call 800-537-8185
to find a Morris Bart office near you.
