The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says in 2012, there were more than 333,000 large trucks involved in accidents in the United States. Although large trucks accounted for 4 percent of all registered vehicles, they were responsible for 8 percent of all fatal crashes and 3 percent of accidents resulting in an injury.
Who Is Most Likely to Be Killed in a Fatal Semi Wreck?
According to the NHTSA, in 2012, 3,921 people were killed and 104,000 were injured in accidents involving a semi. Not surprisingly, occupants of a smaller vehicle are more likely to die in these accidents. Unfortunately, a recent story out of Charlotte County supports this.
In mid-August, a wreck involving an 18-wheeler and pickup truck resulted in the driver of the pickup being sent to the hospital in critical condition. The 59-year-old pickup driver’s injuries are so serious that some believe they could be fatal.
WINK News says the 60-year-old driver of the semi “was not injured when he ran the stop sign and hit the pickup truck.” The Florida Highway Patrol has cited the trucker for causing the wreck.
The story above shows who is most likely to be killed in a collision involving an 18-wheeler. The NHTSA says, “Of these fatalities in 2012, 73 percent were occupants of other vehicles, 10 percent were nonoccupants, and 18 percent were occupants of large trucks.”
Moreover, when it comes to injuries caused by large truck accidents, the data is more of the same. Occupants of other vehicles were injured in 73 percent of the cases, 3 percent were nonoccupants and 24 percent were drivers of large trucks.
This information could not be clearer: passenger vehicles frequently come out on the losing end when involved in a wreck with a tractor-trailer. This heightened risk for other vehicles on the road means that truckers must be extra vigilant when operating on our public roadways.