First responders arrived at a gruesome accident scene on a rural stretch of Kentucky highway following a tragic collision that claimed 11 lives.  A tractor-trailer crossed the median of the interstate and struck a van head-on, resulting in the deadliest crash involving a commercial motor vehicle since 1988.  The National Transportation and Safety Board will be investigating this crash, specifically looking into the practices of the trucking company, Hester Incorporated, and its driver, who also died in the crash.  The NTSB will likely be looking into whether Hester Inc. was in compliance with the regulations set forth by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.  The Board should also have an interest in reviewing the professional qualifications of the truck driver.

The design of that particular stretch of highway may also be investigated.  The median that was crossed was protected by a cable barrier.  The tractor-trailer, which was heavily loaded with auto parts at the time of the crash, plowed right through the cable median and into oncoming traffic.  Investigators admit that a cable barrier of this type is not designed to stop a 60,000+ pound truck at highway speeds.  One wonders whether a concrete barrier could have mitigated the losses sustained in this tragic fatal truck crash.

A truck accident injury lawyer would request the DOT medical card and previous medical records of the truck driver to determine if the driver was medically qualified to operate a tractor-trailer.  Due to a shortage of qualified truck drivers, commercial trucking companies are placing medically-unqualified drivers behind the wheel.  These drivers can become easily distracted by prescription medications and infirmities that would have likely been caught by a DOT medical examiner, possibly preventing the crash all together.