ELMWOOD, WI — Mary Husby was rushed to the hospital after an accident between a dump truck and a minivan that happened in Elmwood, Wisconsin on Thursday, April 23rd, 2015. News reports out of Pierce County said that the accident happened around 9:45 Thursday morning.
Police said that 88-year-old Mary Husby was hurt when the minivan she was driving and a dump truck hauling lime crashed on Highway 72. Police said that Husby’s car hit a parked trailer on the side of the road before it spun into the path of the dump truck.
Husby was taken by EMS personnel to a nearby hospital with unspecified injuries. The driver of the dump truck was identified as Nathan Donaldson, who was unhurt in the accident.
The Wisconsin State Patrol assisted county officials with the accident scene.
Scene of the Accident
View of the Road
Commentary:
I’m not sure what I’m looking at here, because the news doesn’t really indicate where the truck had been parked on the shoulder. Was it 5 feet from the Highway? 2 inches? Was the truck jutting into traffic? When it comes down to it, details matter and this is likely going to be a matter of positioning. What I mean is that the FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) has certain regulations for where a commercial truck can park off the highway.
If this truck wasn’t parked correctly, then it may have inadvertently caused an accident. I’m not saying that’s the case, but I don’t think it’s quite fair to pin the blame on the woman injured here until we know all the facts. Perhaps she did lose control of her car, but if this large, dangerous truck was parked in harm’s way, then I think this needs a second look.
— Grossman Law Offices
