Highway 99 Road Accident
In a foggy Saturday morning in November 2007, 108 cars and 18 big trucks have collided along Highway 99 near Fresno, California, making this incident as the worst multiple vehicle collision in the US history in terms of involved cars.
According to investigators, the first crash happened before 8 am in the south of American Avenue when a thick fog suddenly appeared from nowhere.
Because of low-visibility, drivers failed to see other cars even if these were only 2 feet away from them, some witnesses and victims said.
According to authorities, thick seasonal fog (called Tule fog) is common in Central California during autumn and winter months.
Some drivers said they have tried not to hit other cars, but with the low-visibility, they said that this is impossible.
Meanwhile, firefighters and rescue workers immediately arrived at the scene to help those who have been injured. But with low-visibility, rescue workers had a hard time extracting victims from their cars as more vehicles and trucks continuously piled up.
Even veteran firefighter capt. Mike Bowman said the multiple vehicle collision along Highway 99 has shocked him, adding that he and his colleagues can hear cars crashing from a distance.
According to the California Highway Patrol officials (CHP), 18 big trucks have been damaged along the northbound Highway 99 south of Fresno after the road accident.
The site was frightening, CHP officer Paul Solorzano Jr recalled, describing this as “something like from a movie where all the vehicles and big trucks were crushed.”
By the time the visibility has improved, people were shocked to see the extent of the damage, reaching to about a mile.
Despite the number of vehicles involved in the road accident, miraculously, no one was killed. But still, it left more than a dozen people injured, authorities said.
In 1991, a multiple vehicle collision also happened in the same area, which involved 127 cars and left 17 people dead.
Other Causes of Multiple Car Crash
In Highway 99 road accidents, the weather has caused the multiple car crash. Meanwhile, there are other common factors which can cause multiple car crash such as:
• Slippery road
• Reckless drivers
• Drunk drivers
• Driving beyond the speed limit
• Texting while driving
Economic Costs of Road Accident
Los Angeles multiple vehicle collision and other road accidents cost the city millions of dollars every year.
In terms of national economic costs, motorists advocacy group AAA said that Americans pay an average of $1,000 for all the car accidents in the country every year. The costs include property damage, medical expenses, loss of lives, productivity loss, and emergency and police services.
These are some of the findings according to AAA report:
• If traffic congestion costs $67.6 billion every year, vehicle crashes are two-and-a-half more expensive than this.
• People in a small town pay seven times the cost of traffic jam every year.
• City-dwellers pay two times the cost of traffic congestion every year.
If you have been involved in
Los Angeles multiple vehicle collision, consult with our skilled
personal injury lawyers. Visit our website and avail of our free case analysis.
