May 11, 2012 (Press-News.org) Commercial trucks are -- quite literally -- some of the largest hazards on Oklahoma's roads. A fully loaded semi truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. By comparison, the average passenger vehicle weighs a mere 4,000 to 5,000 pounds. In a collision between the two, the truck almost always comes out on top.
This disparity in size makes truck accidents considerably more deadly than other types of motor vehicle collisions. Although large trucks account for just 4 percent of all registered vehicles and 7 percent of all vehicle miles driven, they are involved in 11 percent of all fatal accidents.
Like car accidents, truck accidents can be caused by a number of different factors. Sometimes, the truck driver is driving too fast for conditions. In other cases, the driver might be fatigued or distracted. Sometimes, the driver does everything right but the truck malfunctions anyway.
In many cases, though, it is the driver of the passenger vehicle that is responsible for causing the accident. Sharing the road with large trucks can be particularly dangerous if drivers don't follow proper safety precautions.
Tips for Avoiding Truck Accidents
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recommends that drivers keep the following safety tips in mind when sharing the road with commercial trucks:
-Don't cut the trucker off: Trucks take a long time to come to a stop, and emergency braking can cause serious accidents. When merging or changing lanes, don't pull in front of a truck until you can see the front of the cab in your rear-view mirror.
-Stay out of blind spots: Trucks have bigger blind spots than passenger vehicles. Many accidents happen when truckers change lanes and hit a car that was hidden in their blind spot. Remember, if you can't see the truck driver in the truck's mirrors, the driver can't see you either.
-Pay attention: Inattentive drivers make mistakes that put everyone else on the road at risk. If you don't notice that a truck is slowing down or changing lanes, you might inadvertently cause a crash.
-Make room: Trucks need extra space to slow down, speed up and make turns. Getting too close increases the possibility of a fatal accident.
By following these tips, you can help make Oklahoma's highways safer for everyone.
Even if you do all you can, accidents can still happen. Driver fatigue, improper truck maintenance and even defective tires can all contribute to an accident.
If you have been injured in an accident with a semi trailer or other commercial truck, it is important you speak with an experienced Oklahoma City personal injury attorney right away. An aggressive attorney will fight for his clients by thoroughly investigate all aspects of an accident to reveal deficiencies that may have contributed to an accident.
Article provided by Joseph J. Reinke, P.C.
Visit us at www.reinkelaw.com
Large Trucks Pose Heightened Risks to Oklahoma Drivers
Large trucks can be a great hazard to other drivers on the road. Knowing how to avoid accidents and what you should do if you are in one is important for all drivers in Oklahoma.
2012-05-11
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Asteroid collision that spawned Vesta's asteroid family occurred more recently than thought
2012-05-11
A team of researchers led by a NASA Lunar Science Institute (NLSI) member based at Southwest Research Institute has discovered evidence that the giant impact crater Rheasilvia on Asteroid (4) Vesta was created in a collision that occurred only about 1 billion years ago, much more recently than previously thought. This result is based on the analysis of high-resolution images obtained with the Dawn spacecraft, which entered orbit around Vesta in July 2011.
In addition to creating the crater, the impact is believed to have launched a large number of fragments into space, ...
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Applies To Plea Bargain
2012-05-11
The recent Supreme Court decision in Lafler v. Cooper addresses the degree to which the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of effective assistance of counsel during a criminal case applies to the plea negotiation process.
In Lafler, the defendant received a plea offer from the prosecutor. He rejected the plea on advice of counsel, stood trial, was convicted and sentenced. His sentence was more severe than the plea offer, and he appealed based on ineffective assistance of counsel.
A System of Pleas
The importance of this issue is underscored by the predominance of the ...
Culprit responsible for severe systemic scleroderma complications in African-Americans found
2012-05-11
WASHINGTON – A new analysis finds that compared to Caucasians, African-Americans with systemic scleroderma have more antibodies in the blood that are linked to severe complications and an increased likelihood of death. They say this finding, published today in Arthritis & Rheumatism, suggests physicians can use these disease markers to screen and treat scleroderma patients proactively.
For the study, Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) teamed up with researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine to examine 35 years of data collected about ...
Could the ways animals regenerate hair and feathers lead to clues to restore human fingers and toes?
2012-05-11
Bethesda, Md. (May 10, 2012)—This summer's action film, "The Amazing Spider-Man™," is another match-up between the superhero and his nemesis the Lizard. Moviegoers and comic book fans alike will recall that the villain, AKA Dr. Curt Connors, was a surgeon who, after losing an arm, experimented with cell generation and reptilian DNA and was eventually able to grow back his missing limb. The latest issue of the journal Physiology contains a review article that looks at possible routes that unlock cellular regeneration in general, and the principles by which hair and feathers ...
Seeking Disability Benefits in Fibromyalgia Cases
2012-05-11
Fibromyalgia is a musculoskeletal ailment characterized by widespread pain accompanied by fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues. Doctors believe that the disease amplifies pain by affecting the way the brain processes pain signals. Essentially, painful sensations are a result of how normal signals are amplified. Normally benign aches would register as debilitating pain. Fibromyalgia is also associated with increased fatigue and sleep disturbances which can further debilitate those with the disease.
Fibromyalgia (FMS) awareness has gained significant traction over the ...
A closer look at PARP-1 reveals potential new drug targets
2012-05-11
PHILADELPHIA—A new study published in Science May 11 is shedding light on the molecular details of PARP-1, a DNA damage-detecting enzyme that when inhibited has been shown to be effective in fighting cancer and other diseases.
The investigation led by John M. Pascal, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson's Kimmel Cancer Center, revealed new target sites—including specialized "zinc finger" domains—for drugs aiming to stop PARP-1 activity.
The idea for this area of research is ...
Brown, PC to Assist Texas Business Clients With Fresh Start Amnesty Program
2012-05-11
In announcing the program, Texas Comptroller Susan Combs explained that the amnesty provides an opportunity for businesses to clear up their tax records. Businesses can do this during the amnesty period without having to pay penalties or interest on any tax reports that should have previously been filed.
The amnesty applies to taxes and fees that were due prior to April 1 of this year. It does not apply to underpaid tax returns, nor does it extend the filing periods in a business audit. But Fresh Start does apply to sales taxes, franchise taxes, and other types of state ...
Fighting Sexual Orientation Discrimination in Ohio Workplaces
2012-05-11
Throughout the nation, laws are moving slowly but invariably towards greater protections for LGBT citizens. Unfortunately, LGBT employees still do not have full protection from discrimination in the workplace, particularly in Ohio. As a result, victims of employment discrimination due to sexual orientation will have no legal recourse in many instances. But that is not always the case. Under certain circumstances, LGBT victims of workplace discrimination can vindicate their rights.
There is a growing social and legal trend towards prohibiting sexual orientation discrimination ...
Enzyme corrects more than 1 million faults in DNA replication
2012-05-11
Scientists from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine (IGMM) at the University of Edinburgh have discovered an enzyme that corrects the most common mistake in mammalian DNA.
The mistake is the inclusion of individual bits of RNA within the DNA sequence, which the researchers found occurs more than a million times in each cell as it divides. The findings, published in Cell, suggest the RNase H2 enzyme is central to an important DNA repair mechanism necessary to protect the human genome.
Each time a cell divides it must first ...
Researchers discover how to overcome poor response to radiotherapy caused by low haemoglobin levels
2012-05-11
Barcelona, Spain: Patients with head and neck cancer and a low haemoglobin (Hb) level do not respond well to radiotherapy and therefore both control of their tumour and disease-free survival are compromised. Now researchers from The Netherlands have found that the problems caused by low Hb in these patients can be overcome by the use of a treatment known as ARCON therapy, in which accelerated radiotherapy is combined with carbogen (a mixture of carbon dioxide and oxygen) and the water-soluble vitamin nicotinamide [1].
Hans Kaanders, a professor of translational radiation ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Scaling up neuromorphic computing for more efficient and effective AI everywhere and anytime
Make it worth Weyl: engineering the first semimetallic Weyl quantum crystal
Exercise improves brain function, possibly reducing dementia risk
Diamonds are forever—But not in nanodevices
School-based program for newcomer students boosts mental health, research shows
Adding bridges to stabilize quantum networks
Major uncertainties remain about impact of treatment for gender related distress
Likely 50-fold rise in prevalence of gender related distress from 2011-21 in England
US college graduates live an average of 11 years longer than those who never finish high school
Scientists predict what will be top of the crops in UK by 2080 due to climate change
Study: Physical function of patients at discharge linked to hospital readmission rates
7 schools awarded financial grants to fuel student well-being
NYU Tandon research to improve emergency responses in urban areas with support from NVIDIA
Marcus Freeman named 2024 Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year
How creating and playing terrific video games can accelerate the battle against cancer
Rooting for resistance: How soybeans tackle nematode invaders is no secret anymore
Beer helps grocery stores tap sales in other categories
New USF study: Surprisingly, pulmonary fibrosis patients with COVID-19 improve
In a landmark study, an NYBG scientist and colleagues find that reforestation stands out among plant-based climate-mitigation strategies as most beneficial for wildlife biodiversity
RSClin® Tool N+ gives more accurate estimates of recurrence risk and individual chemotherapy benefit in node-positive breast cancer
Terahertz pulses induce chirality in a non-chiral crystal
AI judged to be more compassionate than expert crisis responders: Study
Scale-up fabrication of perovskite quantum dots
Adverse childhood experiences influence potentially dangerous firearm-related behavior in adulthood
Bacteria found to eat forever chemicals — and even some of their toxic byproducts
London cabbies’ planning strategies could help inform future of AI
More acidic oceans may affect the sex of oysters
Transportation insecurity in Detroit and beyond
New tool enables phylogenomic analyses of entire genomes
Uncovering the role of Y chromosome genes in male fertility in mice
[Press-News.org] Large Trucks Pose Heightened Risks to Oklahoma DriversLarge trucks can be a great hazard to other drivers on the road. Knowing how to avoid accidents and what you should do if you are in one is important for all drivers in Oklahoma.