A recent article notes that a New Jersey school bus carrying children struck an SUV on Grove Street outside Jersey City City Hall. According to reports, the driver of the bus could not stop when the SUV motorist attempted a U-turn on Grove Street between Mercer and Montgomery streets. Officers were called to the scene of the accident.
]]> The bus accident must have been very terrifying and alarming for the students involved in the crash. Sources say that five school children were injured in the collision. The children were taken to a local hospital following the accident. The children were triaged and treated for any injuries sustained.This story is a reminder that our roads tend to be littered with careless and inattentive drivers. Despite their injuries, the students in this particular collision seem to be okay. Nevertheless, some injuries sustained in a car accident can be life-altering.
Dealing with accident-related harm can be very exhausting and expensive. For this reason, if you have been injured from a negligence-induced automobile accident, you may want to speak with someone about your rights and possibilities of recovery. As injured victims try to obtain appropriate medical care, legal recourse should be available to keep individuals financially secure.
Source: NJ.com, "Jersey City police say five boys injured when school bus slams into SUV attempting a U-turn on Grove Street in front of City Hall," Andrew Steadman, Feb. 2, 2012.
]]>The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that the yearly NFL event has become one of the most dangerous days on America's roads. Drunk driving accidents not only cause injuries, but also claim lives, and drunk driving accidents are preventable.
]]> Federal safety statistics show that 48 percent of fatalities that occur on the nation's roads surrounding the NFL championship game involve a driver or motorcyclist that tests over the legal limit for alcohol. It is important for those who are planning to partake in festivities surrounding the national event to prepare for safety. It is similarly important for motorists to be prepared for other drunk drivers who may be on the road during the weekend.Federal Road safety agencies and the NFL are urging Americans to promote safety over the weekend. The slogan being promoted, "Fans Don't Let Fans Drive Drunk," is intended to reduce the risk of car accidents surrounding the weekend's events.
Party hosts can take a number of precautions to prepare for the weekend. One safety official says, "Just as the players on the field prepare for the game, you can prepare for a safe celebration as well."
Party hosts can promote safety by:
People intending to visit local watering holes, taverns or bars should also plan for safety. Designated drivers and cab rides are always valuable resources to reduce the risk of personal injury or death from an alcohol-related car accident.
Source: KTVZ, "Oregon Police Urge Super Bowl Safety on Roads," Jan. 30, 2012
]]>Both drivers suffered personal injuries in the New Jersey car accident. The woman in the SUV was reportedly transported to The Valley Hospital with minor injuries after the wreck. The male driver in the Honda was reportedly trapped inside his car. When emergency responders arrived and were able to get to the college student, he had no pulse.
]]> Police officers reportedly were the first to arrive at the scene. The officers immediately began CPR until paramedics from the Valley Hospital could arrive. The paramedics used a defibrillator and were able to get a pulse. The college student was then airlifted to St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center for emergency surgery. Authorities say that the male driver suffered head injuries in the car accident.Law enforcement has the accident under investigation. Police in Mahwah say that they are looking into a variety of factors. The Police Chief says that, "There are four factors we look into: mechanical failure, a pre-existing medical condition, drugs or alcohol and texting or another distraction." The chief told The Record that, "There's nothing to indicate any one of those factors over another at this point."
Source: The Record, "Ramapo College student 'very critical' after Route 202 crash in Mahwah," Marlene Naanes and Allison Pries, Jan. 30, 2012
]]>Rescuers performed emergency CPR at the construction site accident before an ambulance could arrive. The construction worker, who was wearing a hard hat when the construction accident occurred, was reportedly bleeding profusely in the aftermath of the accident. Doctors pronounced the worker dead at Upstate University Hospital roughly 55 minutes after the ceiling collapsed.
]]> Authorities say that the worker was taking down part of the concrete-and-lathe ceiling during the renovation project on a ninth floor office at the Snow building when the unstable ceiling gave way. The worker was working on a ladder, taking down a section of the ceiling that measured roughly 15 feet by 15 feet.The city fire department says that only one section of the ceiling was unstable, apparently the section the construction worker was tending to. The construction site accident occurred on the ninth floor. The building remained occupied after the accident.
Syracuse police and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are each investigating the fatal construction accident. Authorities say that the company performing the work has proper permits for the project.
New York and New Jersey construction accident attorneys know that construction projects can expose workers to a high risk for head injuries. Many head injuries occur during fall accidents. However, falls are not the only hazards a worker can experience, as the New York accident highlights. The construction industry has the highest risk for work-related brain injuries and fatal accidents than any other industry in America, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Source: The Post-Standard via Syracuse.com "Liverpool construction worker dies after unstable piece of ceiling collapses, falls on him in downtown Syracuse office building," Robert A. Baker, Jan. 25, 2012
]]>Two people jumped into action after the crash, hoping to dig through the pile of sand covering the woman's SUV. Witnesses to the scene say the two Good Samaritans frantically shoveled sand away from the accident victim's vehicle. The witnesses say the two people screamed to see if they could get any response from occupants of the SUV as the two moved sand away from the buried vehicle.
]]> Authorities say that before the accident, the truck driver swerved to avoid a third vehicle that was attempting to make a left hand turn. Police have not determined which of the three vehicles had right of way at the time of the accident.The dump truck rolled onto its side when the driver made his evasive maneuver to avoid the third vehicle. The SUV was caught up in the accident as the truck rolled over. The sand filled the SUV, and the woman inside was also trapped under the massive truck.
The accident occurred near a medical office. A certified-medical assistant witnessed the scene and had hoped to lend her assistance to the woman trapped in the SUV. However, the medical assistant was unable to get to the accident victim to perform CPR. The victim was trapped under the truck and sand in the aftermath of the rollover truck accident.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer, "Accident with truck kills woman in Cherry Hill," Darran Simon, Jan. 20, 2012
]]>Employees from a restaurant on Grand Street did everything they could to assist the victims of the terrifying Jersey City car accident. The owner of the restaurant told the Jersey Journal on behalf of her employees that they used all five of the restaurant's fire extinguishers in an effort to beat back the flames before emergency personnel could arrive.
]]> The chefs from the restaurant were grabbing for the arms of the passenger of the cab, who was trapped inside the burning vehicle. However, the flames were too hot. The 44-year-old man trapped in the cab was later taken to Jersey City Medical Center with burns covering his body. Authorities say the man lost his battle and was pronounced dead Thursday morning.A 41-year-old Jersey City resident, who was walking on Grand Street Wednesday night, was severely injured when the cab came hurtling onto the sidewalk. He was pronounced dead Wednesday evening, roughly an hour after the accident was first reported.
The cab driver, a 31-year-old Jersey City man, was treated and released from Jersey City Medical Center after the crash.
The driver accused of causing the nightmare reportedly walked away from the crash. Police found the man's wallet and identification in the vehicle at the crash site and were able to apprehend the driver nearby. Police say when the found the man, he had glassy eyes and slurred speech. He was arrested and charged with two counts of death by auto, DWI and other charges.
Source: The Jersey Journal via nj.com, "Bail set at $500K for man accused of killing 2 people in fiery Jersey City crash," Michaelangelo Conte, Jan. 20, 2012
]]>Emergency crews were dispatched to the accident scene in Bernardsville around 10:00 a.m. Wednesday. One of the drivers in a passenger vehicle and the truck driver were trapped inside their vehicles.
Police say it took nearly an hour to extricate the trapped drivers, a 36-year-old Paterson man who was in the cement truck and a 24-year-old Bedminster woman in one of the vehicles. The third driver, a 53-year-old woman from Bedminster was treated at the scene and then transported to Morristown for further treatment. She reportedly was released from the hospital Wednesday.
]]> The two drivers who had been trapped in the wreckage were placed in two separate medevac helicopters for transport to Morristown Medical Center. Authorities had the helicopters land at Far Hills Country Day School along Route 202.Authorities began an immediate investigation into the accident and details about what had happened remain unclear. Route 202 and Meeker Road were each closed for nearly eight hours after the accident to allow police and members from the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office Collision Analysis Reconstruction Team to analyze the truck and car accident scene.
Source: Daily Record, "Truck driver dies in 3-vehicle wreck on Rt. 202," Jan. 18, 2012
]]>OSHA inspectors say they found seven serious violations at the construction project. Serious violations in OSHA parlance are those that expose construction workers to hazards that pose a substantial probability of "death or severe physical harm," that the employer knew existed, or should have been aware that the safety hazard existed at the construction site.
]]> Among the seven serious violations, OSHA inspectors claim workers were exposed to injury from potential falls. OSHA inspectors say the site lacked ring buoys, a lifeboat and fall protection for workers at the bridge construction project. Additionally, OSHA says workers were exposed to potential impalement and were allowed to work with machines that had improper protection against unintended startups.Construction site accident lawyers in New Jersey know that the construction industry in among the most dangerous of all industries for workers. A regional OSHA director says, "The construction industry continues to remain one of the most dangerous and heavy highway and bridge work entails a variety of unique hazards."
The company involved says it "has a fulltime safety consultant and there's a constant awareness and intent to comply with the regulations." Despite the company's statement that it has cured the safety deficiencies, it has until Jan. 19 to formally respond to the OSHA citations and the agency's proposed fines could be reduced.
Source: Clifton Journal via NorthJersey.com, "Clifton bridge safety violations," Tony Gicas, Jan. 12, 2012
]]>A 36-year-old Windsor resident was driving the Nissan that struck the officer. Jersey City Police say the driver stopped at the scene of the pedestrian accident. An investigation into the accident continues. Hospital officials say the officer remains in serious, but stable, condition.
]]> It is no secret that pedestrian accidents can leave victims with serious injuries, complications and can even cause death. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that in 2010, the latest year that statistics are available, 139 pedestrians died in New Jersey. That was somewhat of an improvement from the New Jersey pedestrian fatalities that occurred in 2009, which climbed to 158. However, the number of fatal pedestrian accidents in New Jersey remains staggering.The decrease in fatalities in New Jersey during 2010 does not mirror the national trend. The NHTSA says pedestrian accidents appear to be on the rise. Nationwide, pedestrian fatalities in 2010 rose more than four percent over the previous year, and injuries from pedestrian accident skyrocketed 19 percent to 70,000. The traffic safety agency released the numbers for 2010 late last month and officials have not identified any type of explanation for the sharp increase in pedestrian accidents.
Source: The Jersey Journal, "Jersey City cop hit by car remains in ICU after undergoing 4 surgeries, officials say," Michaelangelo Conte, Jan. 9, 2012
]]>The mother of a toddler with medical problems filed a lawsuit late last month in a southern U.S. state against the doctor who delivered the child. The baby was born on June 13, 2009, and according to the recent medical malpractice lawsuit, what followed the birth may shock many people.
]]> The baby was reportedly born with an irregular heart rate. A nurse in the delivery room noted that the infant "made a small cry at delivery and had movement of arms and legs."The lawsuit claims the doctor did not think the baby would survive on its own and put the baby boy in a plastic bin. That bin was placed on a counter and apparently was left unattended "until the family could decide what to do with the body," according to the medical malpractice lawsuit. A few hours later, a nurse passed by the area and noticed the baby gasping for air, according to court documents.
Hospital personnel gave the newborn boy resuscitation therapy before transferring the boy to another medical facility for treatment. The lawsuit says the infant remained in the second facility receiving specialized care for the first three months of his life.
The boy suffered birth injuries, including a brain injury due to the delivery room doctor's negligence, according to the medical malpractice lawsuit. The toddler's mother claims that a pediatrician should have been called in immediately after delivery to provide resuscitation therapy before rushing the newborn to a neonatal care unit, according to the court filing.
Source: The Tennessean, "Lawsuit claims Robertson doctor neglected newborn," Brandon Gee, Dec. 22, 2011
]]>The driver and three other foreign exchange students returning to school in Ohio suffered injuries. New Jersey State Police announced that a second victim of the solo-vehicle accident died Tuesday evening at a hospital in New Brunswick. The second victim to die from the crash reportedly had been sitting in the front passenger seat and suffered head trauma in the accident.
]]> The driver of the vehicle was released from a hospital in Morristown on Tuesday. Authorities believe the 19-year-old driver fell asleep at the wheel. However, toxicology tests were administered and results of those tests remain pending.Two other passengers in the vehicle suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the car accident. The two female passengers reportedly remain hospitalized in stable condition, according to New Jersey State Police.
All five occupants of the vehicle are believed to be foreign exchange students from Ohio State University. The I-78 accident occurred while the students were returning to school on a trip from New York through New Jersey. The students range in age from 19 to 21-years of age.
Source: The Express-Times, "Ohio State University students identified in Monday's fatal I-78 crash in Clinton Township - UPDATE," Sarah Wojcik, Jan. 4, 2012
]]>The alleged alcohol-related car accident left a passenger severely injured. Sources say doctors placed the passenger in a medically induced coma after the accident. Sources say the passenger, who sustained head and liver trauma, was awake and talking Saturday at Jacobi Hospital.
The driver accused of crashing his car on the Bronx River Parkway reportedly is a Bronx cop. The police officer was off duty at the time of the accident, which left his partner with personal injuries, according to news reports. Authorities say the off-duty cop was driving his personal vehicle when the car skidded on the rain-slicked Bronx River Parkway. The car slammed into a divider and flipped over in the alleged drunk driving car accident.
]]> Sources say that law enforcement waited nearly nine hours before performing a blood alcohol test on the driver. Apparently the Internal Affairs Bureau is opening up an investigation into the delay in taking the alcohol test after the injury accident.Investigators at the car accident scene say the driver smelled of alcohol and admitted to having consumed a few drinks before the 4:36 a.m. car accident. The cop and his partner were reportedly celebrating at a precinct holiday party before the early morning crash. The driver faces DWI charges, despite the blood alcohol readings of 0.032 and 0.029 percent, which were taken nearly nine hours after the accident.
Source: New York Daily News, "NYPD investigates reasons for 9-hour DWI test delay," Sarah Armaghan, Henrick Karoliszyn, Ben Chapman and Tina Moore, Dec. 24, 2011
New York Daily News, "NYPD cop charged with DWI, partner in coma after crash on the Bronx River Parkway," Kevin Deutsch and John Doyle, Dec. 24, 2011
]]>After the couple left the scene of the minor fender bender, they were seriously injured in a head-on car accident along Route 70, according to authorities. A quarter mile from the first crash, a 28-year-old man is believed to have attempted to make a left hand turn in front of the couple's pickup truck.
]]> The 28-year-old man's van slammed head-on into the couple's truck. The husband, who is 74-years-old, suffered serious injuries in the New Jersey car accident. His wife, a 71-year-old Toms River woman, died Sunday as a result of the injuries she sustained in the Route 70 head-on crash.The driver of the van reportedly did not have a driver's license. Police say the man attempted to flee the scene of the fatal accident on foot. He was caught a short distance from the scene.
The husband was flown to the trauma center at Jersey Shore University Medical Center after the crash. The wife reportedly died of her injuries Sunday morning at Kimball Medical Center in Lakewood.
The 28-year-old man is believed to be an undocumented immigrant. He is being held in the Ocean County Jail on $175,000 bail and on an immigration hold due to his immigration status.
Source: Asbury Park Press, "Toms River woman, 71, dies in hit-and-run crash after being involved in minor accident just before," Michelle Gladden, Dec. 19, 2011
]]>A spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration says that the pilot requested clearance to ascend to a higher altitude before losing clear radio contact with the tower. The plane disappeared from radar and slammed down onto the highway in New Jersey. The plane crashed into the median, slid across Interstate 287 and burst into flames, sending thick black smoke billowing into the sky.
]]> The aircraft was en route to Georgia with two New York City investment bankers. One of the men is also a pilot and the single-engine aircraft was registered to him. In addition to the two investment bankers, the wife and two children of the pilot were aboard the craft. All five people were killed in the plane crash.Witnesses say the plane appeared to be spinning out of control before descending to the Interstate. One witness in Morristown says he could see smoke coming from both wings of the aircraft before it crashed. A second witness says the plane twirled and flipped before ascending straight down when one of the wings appeared to fall off the plane.
Authorities shut down both sides of the highway after the fatal crash. The majority of the plane reportedly came to a rest in the middle of the northbound lanes of Interstate 287.
Source: Associated Press, "5 killed in plane crash on major NJ highway," Samantha Henry, Dec. 20, 2011
]]>The medical malpractice lawsuit alleges that the surgeon and anesthesiologist were negligent and that they failed to resuscitate the patient after the signs of distress surfaced during the procedure. The young woman perished during the oral surgery. The chief medical examiner determined the cause of death to be hypoxia. The medical examiner says the woman died of oxygen deprivation while she was under anesthesia.
]]> Sources estimate that roughly 5 million Americans undergo the routine wisdom tooth procedure each year. Complications can occur during any surgical procedure and pulling wisdom teeth is no exception. In December last year, a 14-year-old teen was found dead in Georgia a day after having his wisdom teeth pulled.The most common complication from wisdom tooth extraction reportedly involves permanent nerve damage. More than 11,000 people suffer nerve damage each year while having their wisdom teeth pulled, according to the American Journal of Public Health. More serious complications, however, can include such issues as fractures of the jaw or teeth and brain tissue infections. Life-threatening issues, such as bleeding and hypoxia, can also occur during the procedure.
One dental consultant on the West Coast says "at least two-thirds" of the roughly 10 million wisdom teeth oral surgeons pull each year are unnecessary. The consultant wrote in the American Journal of Public Health that, "Third-molar surgery is a multibillion-dollar industry that generates significant income for the dental profession."
The parents of the Maryland teen who died in April hope their medical malpractice and wrongful death lawsuit helps to highlight the risks of oral surgery involving wisdom tooth extraction and to highlight the need for better emergency training for oral health practitioners, according to a family spokesperson.
Source: ABC News, "Parents Sue After Teen Dies During Wisdom Tooth Surgery," Katie Moisse, Dec. 15, 2011
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