Thirteen people died in a car accident when a farm vehicle transporting field laborers crashed into a truck that was pulling a trailer. The farm vehicle, a conversion van which was over 15 years old, had not been properly inspected for several years, states a N York Car Accident Lawyer. The van crumpled upon impact leaving only two of the fifteen people in the car alive; the two survivors suffered severe injuries as a result of the collision.
The driver had a history of mostly minor traffic violations. The majority of which were moving violations although he was charged with driving while intoxicated several years before the accident. He was driving without a license at the time of the injuries. Although unknown with certainty at the time of this accident, it is suspected that many of the victims in this accident were not United States citizens.
All of the people in the van were not wearing seatbelts at the time of the accident. Although in general passengers in vehicles are required to wear seatbelts, the law in Long Island does not apply to farm vehicles which are subject to less stringent safety regulations.
The truck driver was not injured in the accident. The truck driver from Manhattan was just starting his vehicle after taking a break on the side of the road to catch up on some sleep. He was not blamed in the incident, explains a witness.
The van was traveling at a high speed when its brakes malfunctioned and the driver of the vehicle was unable to stop. Because they were on a two lane road there was very little room to maneuver to avoid the truck.
All of the workers had just finished an overnight shift working in a tomato packing plant when the accident occurred. It is suspected that the driver was tired at the time of the accident and had a slower than usual reaction time. If the driver’s response took slightly longer that average followed by the vehicle’s brakes malfunctioning, it would have been almost impossible for the accident to be avoided.