Posted in Car Accident,Personal Injury,Tennessee Accident Law on April 6, 2016
Multiple Injuries Reported after Van Strikes Utility Pole in Clarksville
Four people suffered injuries after the van they were traveling in crashed into a mailbox, a utility pole, and then a house in Clarksville on Tuesday evening.
According to a report by Clarksville Now, the accident occurred on Old Russellvile Pike between Warfield Blvd. and Centennial Dr. just after 8 p.m Tuesday.
An officer with the Clarksville Police Department told reporters that one child suffered serious injuries during the accident and was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center via LifeFlight helicopter to receive treatment for his or her injuries.
Three others were injured during the accident—the male driver, a female passenger, and another juvenile passenger—and they were all transported to Tennova Medical Center to receive treatment for non-critical injuries.
Police say that the cause of the accident is unknown at this time, and investigators are still working to determine why the van left the roadway and struck the mailbox, utility pole, and house.
What Are Common Causes of Single-Vehicle Accidents?
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says that more than half of all car accidents in the United States involve just a single vehicle. As with multi-vehicle accidents, single-vehicle accidents can cause drivers and passengers to suffer serious injuries, especially when they occur at moderate to high speeds. The causes of single-vehicle accidents can vary, as some may be due to uncontrollable factors, while others may be due to negligent driving behaviors.
At Matt Hardin Law, our Clarksville car accident lawyers have handled many single-vehicle accident claims over the years, and we’ve found that some of the most common avoidable causes of these crashes include the following:
In addition to being a primary cause of multi-vehicle accidents, distracted driving is also a major cause of single-vehicle accidents, especially those that involve vehicles running off the roadway. All it takes is a momentary glance at your phone, stereo, or GPS for your vehicle to begin drifting into other lanes of traffic or off the roadway itself. When that happens, you may overcorrect, increasing your chances of losing control and striking a nearby object.
Safe driving requires alertness and quick reaction times. Drivers who are fatigued, sleep-deprived, or drowsy are often much less observant of the things happening around them and much slower to react when a potential accident situation occurs. In some cases, they may even fall asleep and drift off the roadway before striking nearby objects. If you’re ever behind the wheel and feel sleepy, pull over to a safe space and rest before continuing to drive.
The consumption of alcohol, drugs, and certain prescription medications can cause significant impairments in everything you need to drive safely, including your judgment, your fine motor skills, and even your vision. Drivers who are impaired when they get behind the wheel are at a high risk of causing both multi-vehicle and single-vehicle accidents, with the latter often involving collisions with parked vehicles, street signs, utility poles, and even buildings.
In addition to these common causes, other factors that can cause single-vehicle accidents include debris in the roadway, poor road conditions due to snow, ice, rain, and fog, and vehicle defects, such as tire blowouts, brake failures, and transmission issues.
When a passenger is injured in a single-vehicle accident that was caused due to the driver’s negligence, he or she may be able to pursue a claim for compensation. The injuries that single-vehicle accident victims suffer can be just as debilitating as the injuries that victims of multi-vehicle accidents suffer, and we believe that innocent victims of all car accidents should never be responsible for their own medical bills, lost wages, and other accident-related expenses.
If you or someone you love was injured in a single-vehicle accident that was caused by negligence or careless driving, we may be able to help you get the money you deserve. To find out how we can help you during this time, dial (931) 274-7788 or complete a free online consultation form.
