August 16, 2005
Lowndes County - A crumpled pile of metal is all that's left of 30-year-old Robert Grove's Jaguar. "A 2000 tractor trailer traveling south hit the rear end of the Jaguar and unfortunately, the driver of the Jaguar suffered fatal injuries," said Cpl. Jeffrey Kidd.
State troopers think the driver of a semi was following too closely when he ran over the back of Grove's car, killing him instantly. "We're seeing a trend here lately with commercial motor vehicles, they seem not to be allowing enough stopping distance between the vehicles," said Kidd.
Ricky Smith has noticed the trend, too. He's an accident investigator for the Department of Transportation, and says scenes like this have become all too familiar. "Basically the same things, this year we've had several rear end accidents in tractor trailers, just not paying attention, running up on cars too fast and basically running over them," said Smith.
That's what's causing the crashes, but what can be done to prevent them? If a semi is closing in, there's not much you can do, but paying more attention to your surroundings could help avoid an accident. "Always look to the rearview mirror to see what's going on and if a vehicle is coming up on them too fast, maybe they'll have an out and be able to drive out of it," said Smith.
"Be aware that these commercial motor vehicles aren't going to be able to stop in the same time you are and make sure you allow enough stopping distance if the commercial motor vehicles aren't," said Kidd.
The driver of the semi was not hurt in the crash. Charges against him are pending the accident investigation.
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