Articles Posted in Personal Injury

Traffic safety affects people on the roadways, the shoulders of the road, sidewalks, and crosswalks. It does not simply concern those who are driving. Bicyclists and pedestrians are using roadways in ever increasing numbers. Accidents affect all of those who occupy the roadway including drivers, passengers, pedestrians, runners, joggers, and cyclists. As traffic increases more and more interactions are had between cars, buses, trucks, and cyclists and pedestrians.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that more than 150,000 pedestrians were treated in emergency rooms in 2013 for nonfatal injuries in automobile-pedestrian crashes and approximately 4,735 pedestrians were killed in these same types of accidents. Think of what that means on a daily basis with regard to these types of devastating accidents. 410 pedestrians were hurt every day in 2013 one died about every two hours.

When you consider these accidents, it is obvious that someone was at fault in nearly every one of them. If the driver was at fault, an innocent pedestrian likely suffered catastrophic injuries due to the driver’s carelessness. These accidents can be prevented and avoided if all those involved  the take the time to make safety a priority.

By Patrick N. George

Most everyone knows the dangers of drunk drivers or even distracted drivers. However, people generally ignore an equally pervasive problem of drowsy or sleepy drivers. A short internet search reveals studies showing that motorists who drive with less than 5 hours of sleep are approximately twice as likely to be in an automobile accident as compared to those who get 7 or more hours of sleep. Drivers should be aware that if they get less sleep they are more likely have an accident.

It is startling that drivers that have gotten less than 4 hours of sleep a night, have 4 times the number of car accidents. AAA suggests that anyone who has slept less than 7 hours over a 24 hour period should not drive a vehicle.

Idaho State Police and the Nampa Police Department report a crash involving a semi truck occurred on Wednesday, December 28, 2016 at approximately 9:40 a.m. near the Garrity exit just east of milepost 38.   The eastbound lanes of I-84 were completely blocked for a brief time and motorists were advised to avoid the area.  The driver of the semi had to be extricated from the truck by firefighters and was taken to the hospital after the crash occurred.

The ISP investigation revealed that a pickup truck struck the semi causing it to tip onto its side.  Debris on the road from the crash was hit by another vehicle.  The driver of the pickup said she was coming down the on-ramp when she hit a patch of black ice, lost control of her pickup and crashed into the semi.  The pickup driver was cited for traveling too fast for road conditions.  No other injuries are reported at this time.

Motorists have been cautioned regarding winter road conditions.  ITD resources have been stretched the past couple of weeks due to several storms that deposited large amounts of snow and ice on the roadways. The high volume of traffic on I-84 places it as a top priority for liquid anti-icers and snow removal.  Even with the road treatment, black ice can form quickly and unexpectedly.

Several accidents were reported during the morning commute on I-84 Thursday morning, December 22^nd.  As dense fog and freezing fog rolled into parts of the Treasure Valley,   motorists were instructed by ISP, ITD and local police departments to be sure to slow down.  Visibility was reduced in certain areas to a quarter of a mile.

An accident occurred on eastbound I-84 at milepost 36 near the Franklin exit in Nampa shortly before 6:30 a.m. which blocked the two left lanes of travel.   ISP continues to investigate the cause of the crash; however, it is likely that weather and road conditions were contributing factors.

Fog can be quite dangerous, especially when temperatures dip below freezing.  Fog can freeze instantly on exposed surfaces forming black ice on roadways catching drivers off-guard.  Drivers should reduce their speeds to give themselves time to react if hazards appear.  Never use your high beams which cause a glare but rather turn on your low beams so that other drivers can see your vehicle.  Stay focused on the road and follow the lines to ensure that you remain in the proper lane.  Remember to leave plenty of distance between your vehicle and those in front of you to account for sudden stops, hazards and/or changing traffic patterns.

By Patrick N. George

Accidents are almost never just a simple matter of one person being at fault and paying for the injuries caused. Usually both parties bear some responsibility and attorney’s, judges, and ultimately juries are the ones who end up assigning the percentage of fault to each side. The case is presented to the jury and it compares the fault and adds the percentages up to 100%. When the plaintiff or injured party is compared to the defendant, his or her fault reduces the amount recoverable. In other words, if he is 25% negligent in causing the accident and the defendant is 75% liable, the plaintiff’s jury award will be reduced by 25% giving only 75% to the injured party. This principle is known as the rule of modified comparative fault.

Thirty-three states observe the rule of modified comparative fault. Each is free to interpret it differently. Idaho follows the 50 percent bar rule. This means that a victim may only recover damages if he or she is found to be responsible for 50 percent or less of the accident.

By Patrick N. George

As could be expected, with the rise in bicycling, there has been a corresponding increase in injuries. A recent study showed that this increase even in the number of adult bicycling injuries between 1998 and 2013. Pocatello, Idaho has seen its own tragedies when it comes to bike riding when a well known and beloved physician in the area was seriously injured. One study involved data gathered from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System and combined with U.S. Census information. The study showed that the increase is, in part, the result of increasing injuries in cyclists that are older than 45 years of age. This comes as no surprise given that cycling in that age group is becoming more and more popular.

The increase in injuries to older riders is substantial. When one compares 1998 and 1999 to 2012 and 2013, an increase in cyclist injuries was 28%. When looking at age groups, those injured in an accident who were over 45 increased from just 23% to 42% of the total injured riders. Worse, the hospitalizations involving this older group of riders increased from 39 % to 65%. One analyst has surmised that the speed of these bicycles is in large part responsible for the more severe injuries and the higher number of hospitalizations.

By Patrick N. George

Once again temperatures have dropped below the freezing point this here in Idaho. This means that drivers and pedestrians must again be aware of the possibility of black ice on roads, bridges, and melting snow along the sides of roads.

Drivers are often not cautious enough about slick roads and can quickly lose control of their automobiles. The reality is, even experienced drivers and automobiles with good tires can be at risk of having an accident if they encounter black ice or other slick conditions on roadways. Oftentimes people drive carefully when snow is falling, but do not exercise the same caution when a road could be icy.

By Patrick N. George

Deadly road rage accidents can happen at any time. Responsible residents everywhere wonder what they can do to curb road rage. To make our roads safer and reduce road rage, there are a couple of situations we need to recognize: first, we need to be mindful of our own aggressive driving behaviors and second, we need to recognize aggressive driving by those around us.

Recognizing the aggressive driver in You

By Patrick N. George

Trampolines and trampoline parks are fun, but they can be dangerous. Trampoline park-related injuries have risen as the popularity of indoor jumping has spread.

A new study in pediatrics found that trampoline parks in the US have increased from 40 in 2011 to 280 in 2014. As one might imagine, injuries have also increased. In fact, trips to the emergency room due to injuries at trampoline parks have increased dramatically from 580 in 2010 to about 7,000 in 2014, the last year of the study. Interestingly, the study found that injuries from home trampolines remained constant over the same study period. As one might expect, those injured at these trampoline parks are more likely to be males around the age of 13.

By Patrick N. George

BURNS

It doesn’t matter whether a person has been involved in a car accident, a product liability accident, or employment issue, burns are often one of the major causes of injury to a person. They can also be extremely painful, serious, and cause the most scarring of all the injuries. Most patients suffering from extensive burns will spend lengthy periods of time in hospitals, and incur thousands of dollars in medical costs. Then after all of this, the victim can still end up with permanent injuries.