San Antonio Bus Accident Kills Two, Injures Dozens

0 comments

Posted on 18th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , ,

Two people were killed and several dozens injured Tuesday in an accident on Interstate 37 about 55 miles of San Antonio, Texas.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/88142227.html

The victims of the crash were Christina Campos, 62, of Lewisville and Efrain Cominquez-Valenzuela, 27, of Brownsville. About 40 other passengers were taken to local hospitals for treatment.

The bus had left San Antonio and was traveling toward the United States-Mexico border, to Matamoros, when passengers heard a noise, which was then followed by the bus falling on its side in a grassy area. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ijguxOycaJH5NkjxzPOjz_cXzv-AD9EGDQD00

Passengers had to escape by crawling out of windows and the emergency exit. Police are investigating the cause of the accident, but they suspect equipment failure.

As always, we are concerned about the potential for brain injury in the survivors. Buses don’t have the safety equipment that would prevent brain injury and from the sounds of this crash, passengers may have been thrown around inside the bus during the accident. Anyone hurt should make sure they return to the Emergency Room the next day if they have any problems with amnesia, confusion, dizziness, headache, or any other concussion related symptoms.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Wisconsin School Bus Accident Injures Two Students, Parent

0 comments

Posted on 26th February 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , ,

Two students and a parent were hurt Wednesday when a Pulaski school bus backed into a car in Green Valley, Wis.

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/article/20100225/GPG0101/2250637/1207/GPG01/Update–Pulaski-bus-driver-off-job-after-2-students-hurt-in-crash

The school bus driver, a veteran driver for more than 30 years, was pulled off the job pending an investigation by the Wisconsin State Patrol.

The bus was backing out of a driveway when it hit a car on Hintz Road. That car’s passengers were a mother and her children, two students from Fairview Elementary School. The mother and one of the children were hurt, as one of the students on the bus. That bus passenger was taken to the hospital by ambulance.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Bus Driver Who Sparked Cellphone-Ban Debate Is Involved In Second Fatal AccidentBus Driver Who Sparked Cellphone-Ban Debate Is Involved In Second Fata

0 comments

Posted on 20th February 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , ,

Some people never learn from their mistakes, and the innocent suffer. The bus driver who sparked a national debate on motorists using cellphones after a 1999 accident which killed a 2-year-old girl has been involved in another fatal crash.

On Wednesday Frederick Poust III, 38, of Schwenksville, Pa., was driving a school bus in Montgomery County about 30 miles from Philadelphia when he hit a Honda Civic. Poust allegedly turned in front of the Civic, killing passenger Richard Taylor, 27, of Gilbertsville, Pa., and hospitalizing its driver, Freddy Carroll, 41, of Perkiomenville, Pa.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/84762257.html

Five students on the bus suffered minor injuries. Police are still investigating Wednesday’s crash, and that probe will determine if criminal charges are filed against Poust.

Poust was thrust into the national media spotlight in 1999 when he ran a stop sign, while calling his girlfriend on his cellphone, and hit another vehicle in Hilltown Township, Pa. The young girl Morgan Lee Pena was killed in the accident.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-us-school-bus-crash-fatal,0,6176842.story

Morgan’s family became advocates for laws barring the use of cellphones while driving, sparking a debate over the issue. The family was even on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” to lobby for their cause.

The family also sued Poust and his employer, Delaware Valley College, and a confidential settlement was reached. The Pena family reportedly received more than $200,000.

Poust’s current employer is Student Transportation of America, based in Wall Township, N.J. The company said it knew he had an accident in 1999, but that criminal and vehicle records had not provided any details on the incident.

Back in 1999 Poust was also sued by a man whose car he hit in the rear, totaling it. That case was settled.

The claim against the bus company is called “negligent entrustment.” Before you hire someone and allow them to drive a vehicle controlled by you, you have a duty to learn the kind of things a google search would have learned about Poust. That you would not do even that minimum when the safety of children is a stake, is outrageous.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

One Woman Killed, One Sustains Head Injuries, In San Francisco Accidents

0 comments

Posted on 11th February 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , ,

An accident involving a San Francisco Water Department truck killed one woman, and a Muni bus injured another woman Tuesday afternoon, according to The San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/10/BAQB1BV4IQ.DTL&type;=printable

Xiu Fang Huang, 63, was struck by the water department truck while she was crossing Ocean Avenue near Miramar in the Ingleside area. The city truck hit here and then two of its wheels rolled over her body, dragging and crushing it.

In the second accident, a Muni bus hit and seriously injury a woman who was walking across San Bruno Avenue, near Burrows Street. There is a crosswalk there, but no stop signs or stop lights.

The unnamed woman, believed to be in her 70s, was thrown into the air, and came down 15 feet away from the crosswalk. She sustained head injuries, and was brought to a hospital for treatment.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Bus Overturns And Injures 19 Soldiers in Florida

0 comments

Posted on 5th February 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , ,

Nineteen soldiers were injured when a National Guard bus overturned in Florida Tuesday, the First Coast News reported. http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/mostpopular/news-article.aspx?storyid=151488&provider;=top

The accident took place in Clay County on state Road 21 not far from Gold Head Branch State Park, north of Keystone Heights.

The passengers on the bus were 30 soldiers from the 690th Military Police Company of Crystal River, Fla. The unit, which is based near Tampa, was moving in a convoy of four buses not far from Camp Blanding. One of the buses slowed down, and the bus behind it swerved and then overturned, injuring the armed military inside of it.

The soldiers who needed treatment were taken to Shands Gainesville, Shands Medical Clinic in Stark and Orange Park Medical Center.

The rest of the soldiers were required to go to Camp Blanding for counseling, which is mandatory when a Florida National Guard solider is involved in an accident or a traumatic event.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

South Carolina Weighs Texting Ban for School Bus Drivers

0 comments

Posted on 4th February 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , ,

South Carolina is considering a bill that bans school bus drivers from texting while they’re behind the wheel. http://news.sc/2010/02/03/texting-ban-planned-for-south-carolina-school-bus-drivers/

The question must be asked: how could such a measure fail to pass? If there is any place that texting would violate all concepts of safety and public policy, it would have to be while driving school children in a bus.

Under the proposed legislation, school bus drivers would face up to a $100 fine if they were caught violating the texting prohibition.

If it passes the ban, South Carolina would be an addition to the 19 states and Washington, D.C., who have already barred texting while driving.

There has been considerable research on whether texting bans really lead to less accidents. A recent study by the Highway Loss Data Institute found the restrictions have no impact, while research by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute said that texting drivers are 23 times more at risk to have an accident or almost have an accident than those who are not distracted. Add a touch screen phone like the Iphone to that equation and the risk of a catastrophe has to grow exponentially.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Man Killed in Illinois Head-On Collision With School Bus

0 comments

Posted on 31st January 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

, , , , ,

A man driving a pickup truck was killed Wednesday in a head-on crash with a school bus in the East Saint Louis area of Illinois.

The accident took place as snowy weather made roads slick. The man driving the truck, who wasn’t identified, was driving west on Douglas Road and crashed near Kraft Road, according to the Belleville News-Democrat of Belleville, Ill. For the full story, see http://www.bnd.com/179/story/1107676.html?storylink=omni_popular

There were no children on the bus. The bus driver was hurt and was brought to a local hospital for treatment.

St. Clair County sheriff’s officers blamed the accident on the driver going to fast and the inclement weather.

In any case involving a skidding accident, such as this one, an investigation should be made as to whether the tires of the vehicle which lost control, were improperly placed or rotated. If the vehicle had two new or newer tires on the front, instead of the back, then this would likely cause severe inability to control the vehicle after hydroplaning begins. The tires with the greater tread need to go on the back, not the front. See http://fishtail.tv

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney