Accidents involving semitrailers are radically different from those between smaller vehicles. Because of their enormous size, these vehicles can cause a significant amount of damage. A car or similar-sized passenger vehicle simply can't hold up to the impact of a semitrailer, and serious injuries and deaths are common in these types of collisions. But even if the crash involves two large semis of the same size, the amount of damage can be high and injuries are likely.

A recent truck accident in Blue Creek, Utah, demonstrated this fact. A semi pulling a single trailer was hit by one towing an empty tanker-trailer. According to the Utah Highway Patrol, the tanker jackknifed just before it hit the slower-moving trailer. Both trucks were in or near the emergency lane when another semi lost control and jackknifed. That third truck, which was pulling a box trailer, lost control and slid into the tanker truck.

The drivers and passengers of the trucks suffered multiple injuries. The driver of the first truck was taken to a hospital with head and facial injuries. The driver of the second truck suffered chest injuries and her husband, who was sleeping in the back of the cab, suffered chest and back injuries. The driver of the third truck was treated at the scene and released, but his co-driver, who was also riding in the sleeper, was taken to a hospital with a back injury.

The cause of the three-truck collision is being investigated by the Utah Highway Patrol. Because it involved more than one impact, multiple drivers could be found at fault and be held liable for the drivers' injuries. The speed of each of the semitrailers, particularly those that crashed into others, could be taken into account because stopping and slowing such enormous vehicles is much more difficult than with a car. If the drivers were found to have been going too fast for the road conditions, it could affect the settlement in a possible personal injury case.

Source: ABC4.com, "3 semis involved in I-84 crash," Dan Metcalf Jr., Jan. 20, 2012