Rollover in Arizona Kills 1

An accident last Wednesday involving two minivans. One person was killed and several other injures. The collision occurred just before 6:30 pm and closed several lanes of traffic on the Loop 202.

One minivan was driving westbound on the 202 and suddenly veered left crossing into the dirt. The van struck the highway median barriers and rolled, ejecting two of the five people inside. A second minivan then crashed into the first.

One of the people in the first van was pronounced dead at the scene and the four others were taken to hospitals. There were no reported injuries in the second vehicle.

As with many of these cases, we don’t know all of the information but there are many things we can address about these types of accidents. For instance, rollover accidents account for 33% of all passenger vehicle fatalities, amounting to over 10,000 deaths each year. Also, in three out of four of these accidents the victims were ejected indicating they weren’t wearing a seatbelt. According to Safecar.gov, rollovers occur in one of two ways: Tripped or un-tripped. A “tripped” rollover is one in which a vehicle leaves the roadway and slides sideways either digging its tires in to soft soil, hitting a steep slope, or hitting an object like a curb or guardrail. The force applied to the tires can then cause the vehicle to roll. An “un-tripped” rollover is less common, occurring less than 5% of the time, and involves high-speed collision avoidance maneuvers. This type is more likely to happen to top-heavy vehicles.

Rollovers should not happen under normal driving conditions. A rollover can occur, however, if a tire blows out, if the vehicle is hit from the side, or if the driver turns too quickly or sharply. The resulting liability would depend on what actually happened. In the instance of a tire blowout, the manufacturer or the mechanic may be liable. If the vehicle was hit from the side, it is very likely a driver was at fault. If the vehicle turned too quickly or sharply. Likewise, probably driver liability.

Regardless of cause, it is important to retain an experienced personal injury attorney as early as possible in order that evidence is preserved and a proper and complete investigation performed to determine the cause of the accident. Evidence has a tendency to disappear with time, and it is very possible that these types of cases may turn on a single piece of evidence. Experienced injury attorneys generally provide free consults, and therefore it costs you nothing to see if you have a situation wherein they might help.