MoDOT loses $1.3 million dollar judgment stemming from tractor trailer crash
A $1.3 million dollar ruling against the Missouri Department of Transportation was just handed down by a arbitration panel that decided the department could have done more to prevent a Missouri tractor trailer accident in 2005.
The accident in question was a December 6, 2005 crash that killed Jemma Dant, 28. Her car was stopped on I-44 when a semitrailer crashed into the back of her car and sent it into another truck. Her car was in a line of traffic which was backed up unusually far from the Vandeventer exit.
The arbitration panel said that MoDOT could have warned drivers about the backup, which extended past the Vandeventer exit lane and into the right lane of westbound I-44.
A St. Louis Post Dispatch report on the case said since the accident, the exit ramp was restriped and electronic warning signs were added that can update drivers about traffic conditions. Neither of these precautions were in place at the time of the accident.
Dant's family had already been paid damages by the trucking company involved in the crash.
This accident was tragic, but the changes that have taken place since the accident may help prevent a similar Missouri truck accident in the future. By hiring a St. Louis area personal injury attorney after an accident, you can possibly recover damages to help you financially through a difficult time and also draw attention to dangerous conditions that can be remedied to prevent future tragedy.
