Grand Forks, ND — A semi-truck hauling potatoes crashed into two other drivers out near the Grand Forks airport off Highway 2 last Thursday (October 22, 2015), leaving two people injured. Kenneth Schwandt, 67, and Susan Lafleur, 59, were identified as the victims.
They were hurt, police said, when their vehicles were both rear-ended by a semi-truck driven by 38-year-old Alejandro Garza from Texas, who was hauling potatoes at the time.
This was around 3:30 p.m. on Thursday afternoon, at the intersection of Highway 2 and Airport Drive.
Schwankt was driving north on Airport Drive the afternoon in his GMC SUV, preparing to turn left onto Highway 2. Behind him was Susan Lafluer’s Ford Edge SUV, which was slowing down as Schwandt was preparing to turn.
Unfortunately, it looks like Garza’s semi-truck was also headed north along Airport Drive and rear-ended Lafleur’s SUV and pushed it into Schwandt’s SUV.
The result was both Schwandt and Lafleur being rushed to a hospital, along with Garza. Schwandt was the least seriously injured, but Garza and Lafleur’s conditions weren’t ever released, so it’s not clear how badly they were hurt.
Right now, it looks like the Highway Patrol is investigating and they may end up citing Garza for the accident, depending on their findings.
Map of the Accident
View from the Road
Commentary:
Judging by the damage done in this accident, it sure seems like this semi-truck driver just wasn’t paying attention that afternoon and rear-ended both of those SUVs. It’s actually a wonder that this wasn’t more serious, because a truck hauling potatoes can weigh quite a bit more than your average SUV.
Now, I actually read up on this intersection, and as it turns out, the North Dakota DOT say that this is the most accident-prone intersection in the entire state. They also also said that it is the only high-risk crossing in that part of ND.
So what’s the takeaway from that? This truck driver was from Texas, do we expect him to know that the intersection was dangerous? Probably not, but there should have been some signs if this intersection is prone to accidents, don’t you think?
At the end of the day, though, this truck driver needs to come clean and take responsibility for this wreck. If his company is a reputable one, they’ll account for their driver’s actions and make things right.
— Grossman Law Offices
