The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration lists Fatigued Driving as one of its major causes of distracted driving crashes. They estimate that approximately 100,000 police-reported crashes annually involve drowsiness and/or fatigue as a principal causal factor. Those serious truck accidents result in an estimated 1,500 fatalities and 71,000 injuries each year, and an annual monetary loss of approximately $12.5 billion. Charleston Truck Accident Lawyers recommend if a driver is feeling drowsy to pull over to the side of the road, take a few minutes to rest before returning to travel.
While traveling down I-26, the occurred at roughly 3:30 am near the Aviation Avenue exit, when the driver fell asleep at the wheel. The Truck crashed into a piece of construction equipment and then into another car. The Rig then overturned and spilt Diesel fuel. Luckily, no one was hurt in the accident. However, the wreck did cause a considerable amount of inconvenience as traffic was snarled as fair back US Highway 78. The wreck caused considerable delay and while the wreck was moved to the shoulder, the delays and backup did not fully clear until well after noon.
One of the major hazards involved in driving long distances is the fatigue that usually comes with it. This fatigue can lead many drivers to dose off at the wheel, creating a potentially dangerous situation. A Tractor-Trailer driver fell victim to this exact condition when he fell asleep at the wheel of his vehicle and overturned it at 3:30am, wrecking it and stalling traffic. South Carolina Auto Accident Attorneys recommend this story as a warning to exercise caution when taking long trips and to avoid getting drowsy while driving.
Sources: The Post and Courier, “Tractor-trailer wreck stalls traffic”, May 31st, 2010
The National highway Transportation Safety Administration
