Gatesville, TX — An 18-wheeler truck was involved in a rollover accident this past Tuesday (February 10, 2015) that left the truck driver with incapacitating injuries. That driver was later identified as Emilio Valencia Jr., 58 years old, and the accident happened around late at night.
According to the news reports, Valencia was driving his 18-wheeler along FM 107 on Tuesday night when he came to the intersection with Highway 36. His truck lost control, somehow, as he was trying to turn onto the highway and drove across SH 36.
The large 18-wheeler then drove off the other side of the highway and hit some trees, overturning in the process. The driver, Emilio Valencia, was pinned inside his truck and had to be extricated before being taken to a hospital. The paramedics at the scene said that he suffered “incapacitating” injuries in the wreck.
Map of the Accident
View from the Road
Commentary:
Depending on the severity of this accident, I’m not sure that the driver should have been trapped inside the cab of the 18-wheeler. Granted, if the truck overturned multiple times, had been driving fast before the accident, or had the weight of the trailer pressed against it, this would make sense. But the cabs on these trucks are supposed to be structurally sound and have integrity to protect the drivers inside. Sadly, a lot of truck manufacturers don’t build with a lot of integrity and you have injured truck drivers as a result. Furthermore, since the driver was making a turn, I have to assume he wasn’t going very fast.
Again, what I’m talking about here only applies if the accident wasn’t particularly severe. If a vehicle of any size gets into a rollover accident of even moderate proportions, there will be a lot of damage done.
— Grossman Law Offices