TRUCK ACCIDENT FAST FACT: According to TruckInfo.net, 78% of all truck accidents happen during the day time.

(Photo credit: J. Scott Park / mlive.com)

TRUCK ACCIDENT FAST FACT: According to TruckInfo.net, 68% of all truck accidents occur in rural areas.

(Photo credit: UpperMichigansSource.com)

The Newark Advocate reports a semi truck accident that occurred on Friday, December 23 around 10:47pm in Kirkersville, Ohio. According to members of the Ohio Highway Patrol, traffic on Interstate 70 slowed due to an earlier accident. An approaching semi truck driver then struck a Ford Escape in the rear after failing to brake in time. The semi truck initiated a chain reaction accident involving a Ford Escape, Mercury Sable, Pontiac G6, Jeep Cherokee, and a Chevrolet van. A 25 year-old woman was taken to Mount Carmel East hospital for treatment. Another woman of unknown age was taken to Licking Memorial Hospital for treatment. A spokesman for the Highway Patrol said the semi truck driver would receive a citation for his involvement in the crash.

AnnArbor.com reports a fatality involving a semi truck on Friday, December 23 at 2:45am in Ann Arbor Township, Michigan. According to representatives from the fire department, a semi truck struck a car in the side on US 23, killing a 22 year-old man at the scene of the crash. The accident took place in the northbound lanes of US 23 near the M-14 intersection. The incident shut down the north side of the highway for several hours.

The Sun Times reports a semi truck accident that occurred on Sunday, December 25 around 2:15pm near La Porte, Indiana. A semi truck transporting 19 Mercedes vehicles sideswiped a 2008 Ford Crown Victoria driven by a police trooper. The policewoman had parked in the shoulder of a highway with her emergency lights on to assist a motorist when the accident took place. The driver-side door of the Ford sustained major damage and the policewoman was taken to La Port Hospital for treatment. The 40 year-old driver of the semi truck received a citation for failing to yield to an emergency vehicle.

MyFox8.com reports a tractor-trailer accident that injured 15 people on Wednesday, December 21 near the Transylvania County city of Lake Toxaway, North Carolina. According to representatives of the North Carolina Highway Patrol, a tractor-trailer driver entered the right shoulder of US 64, overcorrected to re-enter the roadway and jackknifed. The vehicle then struck a van carrying several members of a church. The truck driver received a citation for driving left of center. Four of the injured were listed in critical condition at Mission hospital in Asheville.

WHIOTV.com reports a semi-truck accident involving a school bus on Wednesday, September 14 around 8:30am in the Clark County city of Hustead, Ohio. A semi-truck driven by a 25 year-old male driver rear-ended a bus as it stopped to let a student onboard on U.S. 68, north of State Route 794. The driver of the bus and some students received minor injuries as a result of the crash. The semi-truck driver was charged with Failure to Maintain Assured Clear Distance Ahead.

KENS5.com reports an 18-wheeler accident that occurred on Thursday, September 15 around 7:00pm in the Bexar County area of San Antonio, Texas. According to officials, an 18-wheeler and a pickup truck were traveling along Loop 1604 near De Vilbiss Lane when the big rig collided with the truck, overturning on top of the pickup. The pickup truck driver was killed.

WILX.com reports a semi-truck accident that occurred on Sunday, September 18 shortly before 1:00pm in the Clinton County city of Eagle, Michigan. According to authorities from the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office, a semi-truck rear-ended a motorcycle on Interstate 96, causing the driver & passenger to be thrown from the bike. One woman was killed, and one man was listed in critical condition at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing following the accident.

Boston.com reports a tractor-trailer accident that occurred on Monday, September 19 in Medford, Massachusetts prior to 3:20pm. According to representatives from the State Police, a tractor-trailer lost a tire as it traveled along south Interstate 93. The tire entered the northbound lanes and struck a Ford Mustang, seriously injuring the driver inside of the car. The car came to a rest on its side near Exit 28. The top of the vehicle sustained major damage.

The Indy Star reports a semitrailer accident that occurred on Friday, June 17 in Richmond, Indiana just prior to 1:30pm in the afternoon. A husband and wife were rear-ended by a semitrailer on Interstate 70 as they stopped for a vehicle transporting a wide load. The initial impact moved the couple’s car underneath another semi-truck. The man and woman were airlifted to a hospital in Dayton, Ohio due to injuries.

Mlive.com reports a six-vehicle crash involving a semi-truck on Friday, June 17 in Eagle Township, Clinton County, Michigan. A semi-truck driver rear-ended a couple in a pickup truck at 10:34am as traffic backed up in a construction zone on Interstate 96. The pickup truck then struck 4 additional vehicles, injuring 3 adults and 3 children. A husband and wife in the pickup were transported to Sparrow Hospital in Lansing and were listed in serious & critical condition as of Sunday.

Wfrv.com reports a tanker truck rollover accident that occurred on Sunday, June 19 in Ashwaubenon, Brown County, Wisconsin just prior to 3pm.  A tanker truck driver traveling north on Highway 41 lost control of the vehicle. The truck then crossed a median and came to a rest on its side in the south lanes of the highway. According to representatives from the sheriff’s department, two people in another vehicle were taken to the hospital to be treated for injuries. The driver of the semi-truck also suffered injuries.

News West 9 reports an accident involving a SUV and a semi-truck that occurred on Sunday afternoon, June 19 in Midland, Texas. A semi-truck traveling east on Interstate 20 attempted to change lanes near mile marker 139 and it clipped the SUV, leading it to roll over. The SUV driver was taken to the hospital to be treated for injuries.

The Star-Telegram reports that an 18-wheeler struck a motorcyclist on Interstate 20 at Matlock Road in Arlington, Texas on February 10 around 4:20pm. Upon impact, the driver of the motorcycle fell onto the shoulder of the interstate and was later pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. The 18-wheeler continued driving from the scene.

NorthEscambia.com reports a semi-tractor wreck on February 11 in Molino, Florida near Escambia county. The driver of the semi-tractor pulled out of Molino Road directly into the path of a Toyota Camry, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The semi-tractor driver was cited for violation of right of way. The driver of the Camry and 2 teen passengers were injured.

WZZM reports that a snow plow truck struck a teen around 12:45am in Fruitport Township, Muskegon County Michigan on Sunday, February 13. The 19 year old had pulled over on U.S. 31 after his vehicle ran out of gas. He was returning a gas can to his trunk when a passing snow plow truck struck the car, knocked it into a snowbank and dragged the young driver approximately 20 feet. The driver was found dead when police arrived at the scene.

MSNBC reports that a tractor-trailer sideswiped a school bus on Tuesday, February 8 around 2pm on Mississippi Highway 8, approximately one mile from Calhoun City. Immediately following the sideswipe, the tractor-trailer veered into a second head-on collision with another bus. Three adults were killed and seventeen students were taken to a hospital for injuries. One student was airlifted by helicopter.

WHPTV.com reports that a dump truck carrying 24 tons of road salt was in a five vehicle crash on Friday, February 11 at 9:51am. The crash occurred on I-81 South in Susquehanna Township, Dauphin County, PA. The dump truck rear-ended one car, leading to the pile up.The truck rolled over onto a Volvo driver, who was trapped inside and died. Three other people were taken to local hospitals for injuries.

KIONRightNow.com reports that a semi truck backed over two workers in a lettuce field in Salinas, California, killing one of them, on Monday morning, October 18. The other man was hospitalized. The truck was delivering cardboard boxes to the field where the men were working. Both victims were wearing bright yellow vests meant to prevent just this kind of deadly truck accident.

WKYT.com reports that one person died in a fiery truck wreck involving a coal truck, a dump truck, and a cargo van. The accident happened on Wednesday, October 20, on Highway 80, west of London, in Laurel County, Kentucky. Police called it an “opposite direction side-swipe,” saying the cargo van side-swiped the dump truck, then smashed head-on into the coal truck, which caught fire, rolled down an embankment, and started a small forest fire. The van driver died, and the two other drivers were taken to local hospitals.

NJ.com reports that a driver was killed in an eight-vehicle truck wreck on the New Jersey Turnpike on Wednesday, October 20. Two big rigs, a dump truck, a box truck, a pickup truck, and three cars were involved in the crash, which happened south of interchange 13A in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The disaster began when a big rig driver failed to stop for slowing traffic and ran into the pickup, pushing it into two other tractor-trailers. The pickup burst into flames and its driver died as the crash kept pushing forward, involving more and more vehicles. At one point, traffic behind the truck wreck was snarled for 12 miles.

DetNews.com reports that a University of Michigan student died in a freak truck accident on Friday, October 22, in Detroit.  She was driving north on the M-39 near Curtis at about 2:30pm when the axle of a tanker truck heading the opposite direction broke. Two linked tires came off and hit another big rig before they bounced over the median and hit the victim’s car. She died at the scene.

SouthBendTribune.com reports that a semi-truck driver died early Saturday, October 23, after his truck hit another tractor-trailer in South Bend, Indiana. The first truck burst into flames soon after rear-ending the other big rig, which had been slowing for traffic on the Indiana Toll Road not far from the South Bend/Notre Dame exit. The rear-ended driver and his passenger were unharmed in the truck accident.

DesMoinesRegister.com reports that a dump truck hit and killed a man in a wheelchair at 8am Monday, October 25. The fatal truck accident happened at the intersection of Maury Street and Southeast 14th Street, near downtown Des Moines, Iowa. The driver said he’d failed to see the victim, who’d been crossing the street when he was killed.

Stltoday.com reports that two Indiana big rig drivers were killed in a fiery four-truck accident in Madison County, Indiana. The chain reaction wreck began early Monday, August 9, on westbound I-70, when a semi plowed into a line of vehicles that had stopped for an earlier accident. It pushed a second semi into a pickup, and the pickup then rear-ended a third tractor-trailer. The first truck caught fire, and the driver and another man were trapped inside and perished. The pickup driver and another of the tractor-trailer drivers were taken to a hospital with minor injuries.

WTKR.com reports that a pickup driver died just after 4am on Monday. August 9, after he slammed into a tanker truck that was backing up and blocking the roadway. The truck accident occurred in heavy fog outside of Suffolk, Virginia, on South Quay Road near Wyanoke Trail, just before the Blackwater Bridge.

Freep.com reports two people were hospitalized with serious injuries on Monday, August 9, when a cement truck rolled onto a passenger car on the Van Dyke Expressway, aka 22 Mile Road, west of M-53 near Shelby Township, Michigan. Police were not clear on what caused the afternoon truck accident.

Foxnews.com reports that a man was partially buried in 300-degree molten asphalt following a three-vehicle truck wreck Tuesday, August 10, in Dean Township, Pennsylvania. The dump truck tipped over onto the pickup, crushing its cab and trapping the hurt driver inside. Then the asphalt started pouring into the cab. The man was up to his waist in blacktop when the construction crew shoveled him out. He is now in a Pittsburgh hospital.

Newarkpostonline.com reports that three people were injured the morning of Thursday, August 12, in Bear, Delaware, when their car struck a dump truck trying to turn left from northbound Route 72 onto Porter Road. The car driver and his two passengers were all hospitalized but stable after the truck accident; the truck driver was unharmed. Police are still investigating the cause of the collision

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that three people were injured when a construction truck slid off an overpass and hit a passenger car north of Lehi, Utah, on Thursday night, August 12. The southbound truck was pulling a message board on the northbound side of a closed section of I-15. The driver seems to have thought he was in a traffic lane but was in fact was on the shoulder — until the truck slid down a steep embankment and landed on State Road 92, where it hit a passenger car. Both drivers and passenger in the truck were injured; all three were taken to a hospital.

LSJ.com reports that a semitrailer crashed into a passenger vehicle on Homer Street and Sellers Avenue in Lansing Township, Michigan, crushing the driver’s side of the vehicle and leaving its two passengers injured. Emergency crews extracted the passengers and they were taken to a local hospital for treatment. The extent of their injuries is not currently known. This truck crash is still under investigation.

Tricityherald.com reports that a semi-truck caused a three-vehicle crash on Highway 395 in Kennewick, Washington when it slammed into the back of a pickup truck that had stopped in a construction zone. There were minor injuries in the truck accident and Washington State Patrol officers stated that the driver of the semi-truck could be cited for following too close and that the accident was caused by driver inattention.

Freep.com reports that a semi-truck stopped at a rail crossing in southwest Detroit, Michigan and was struck by a Norfolk Southern train, injuring the train’s conductor and assistant as well as the driver of the semi. With 48 crashes and 12 deaths last year, Michigan ranks 13th in the nation for the number of train crossing wrecks despite the efforts of Norfolk Southern’s “Operation Lifesaver,” a program that raises public awareness of rail crossing hazards. Detroit police investigators are working to determine the cause of this truck/train accident.

Dailyme.com reports that a semi-tractor trailer traveling south on I-75 near Gibraltar Road in Brownstown Township, Michigan, struck and killed a 56-year-old Flat Rock, Michigan resident who was standing beside his car on the right shoulder of the interstate. Police investigators have ruled out alcohol as a factor in the truck accident.

Star-Telegram.com reports that an 18-wheeler hauling produce lost control on Interstate 30 in Arlington, Texas, struck a concrete barrier, then jackknifed causing its trailer to tip over onto an SUV, killing one occupant of the SUV. The victim, a 17-year-old local resident died while receiving treatment at Arlington Memorial Hospital. The driver of the SUV, a 16-year-old who is now in police custody charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle for allegedly stealing the SUV and failure to stop and render aid for attempting to flee the accident scene, received non-life-threatening injuries in the crash. Texas Department of Transportation officials are continuing to investigate the cause of this truck accident and state that at this point, “it is unclear what caused [it.]”

The Columbian reports that a semi-truck failed to stop at a construction zone on Interstate 5 at milepost 88 near Centralia, Washington and struck two passenger vehicles, injuring three people in those cars. Among the injured was the driver of a four-door Cadillac that was totaled in the crash. The state patrol states that the truck accident occurred just before 4 a.m. and they are investigating whether speed played a role in the crash.

Chicago Tribune.com reports that a semi trailer carrying a backhoe became disabled and stopped at a rail crossing in Mebane, North Carolina where it was struck by an Amtrak passenger train going 70 mph, injuring a least a dozen people. Witnesses reported hearing a “big boom” and then seeing debris fly through the air. The train, which connects Raleigh and Charlotte, was carrying 36 passengers at the time of the truck crash. Two passengers were seriously injured and were taken to Duke University Hospital. Those passengers with minor injuries were taken to Alamance Regional where they were treated for cuts and bruises. Gates and lights at the rail crossing were in perfect working order according to a Department of Transportation spokeswoman. Mebane police are investigating.