Truck Driver Sentenced in Fatal Crash Case
He should have been watching the road, but instead an Ohio transport truck driver was watching pornography on his laptop computer. The semi-trailer Thomas Wallace was driving slammed into a disabled car on the New York State Thruway, killing 33-year-old Julie Stratton, a mother of two children.
Wallace, 45, of Brook Park, OH, pleaded guilty to second degree manslaughter and was sentenced to a minimum three year prison term.
Court heard that not only was Wallace distracted by watching a video while driving—he was also suffering from sleep deprivation.
Stratton’s car became disabled on the highway’s passing lane after striking a deer. Her vehicle was then struck from behind by the rig driven by Wallace. The fatality occurred in the Pembroke, NY, area 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Buffalo.
Share this story with your workers as a reminder of the need for both getting sufficient sleep before driving and of paying attention to the road instead of engaging in distractions.
Info to go: Read more about distracted driving by clicking on the Info to Go safety links at www.SafeSupervisor.com
Read MoreDistracted Driving Partnership Announced
A partnership struck between the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the US Department of Transportation will hopefully combat the problem of distracted driving among American workers.
OSHA will investigate and issue citations and penalties when it receives credible complaints that employers require texting while driving.
“It is imperative that employers eliminate financial and other incentives that encourage workers to text while driving. It is well recognized that texting while driving dramatically increases the risk of a motor vehicle injury or fatality,” says Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis.
There will be a special emphasis on reaching younger workers, who fall into the age group most likely to text.
The initiative includes an education campaign for employers, calling on them to prevent occupationally related distracted driving, with a special focus on prohibiting texting while driving.
It also includes forming alliances with the National Safety Council and other organizations to provide outreach to employers, especially small employers, aimed at combating distracted driving.
Read MoreBC Flaggers Urge Drivers to Smarten Up
Construction zone flaggers are urging British Columbia drivers to show more caution after a flag person was struck by a vehicle that been driven through safety cones.
The female worker was not seriously injured in the incident in the metropolitan Vancouver area, which police say may have involved a combination of alcohol and speeding.
“People are just in such a hurry and it’s like they all have tunnel vision,” says Diane Herback, a spokeswomen for the British Columbia flaggers. “They are not looking around them when they are driving. They are texting, putting on makeup and doing whatever in their cars.
She says drivers need to slow down and pay more attention in work zones and police presence needs to be stepped up to catch drivers who speed through work zones. If that doesn’t happen, Herback says flaggers may have to resort to shutting down a road or a bridge for a rally to catch drivers’ attention.
According to WorkSafeBC, two flaggers died and 15 others suffered injuries on the job in 2009.
Info to go: Read more about highway work zone hazards by clicking on the Info to Go safety links at www.SafeSupervisor.com
Read MoreWorker Charged in Co-worker’s Death
A spotter at a trucking company and the company he works for have both been charged after a co-worker was crushed beneath a trailer in Calgary.
The spotter, Keith Hargrave, has been charged with failing to take reasonable care to protect a fellow worker. Hargrave and the victim, 20-year-old James Rintoul, were helping to guide a truck and two trailers into a wash bay when Rintoul was run over by one of the trailers.
Denel Trucking, which employed Hargrave and Rintoul, has been charged with failure to ensure the safety of a worker in connection with the Aug. 8, 2008 fatality. The company is based in De Winton, AB.
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Your odds of dying in a motor vehicle crash are 45 percent lower if you are wearing a seatbelt at the time of impact than if you are not buckled in. (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)
1: Only 1 percent of passengers wearing seatbelts are ejected from car seats during automobile crashes. (Naval Safety Center)
3: Of every four families who place their children in child safety seats, 3 do not use these seats properly. (James Madison University)
16: Males in the 16 to 25 age group are the least likely to wear seatbelts. (Car-Accidents.com)
50: For survivors of motor vehicle accidents, medical costs average 50 percent higher for drivers and passengers who were not wearing seatbelts at the time of the collision. (Car-Accidents.com)
83: Seatbelt use across the US reached 83 percent in 2008. (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)
92: In Canada, 92 percent of all occupants of light-duty vehicles use seatbelts. (Transport Canada 2009 Survey of Seatbelt Use)
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