Motorists traveling on the notorious freeways of Los Angeles have more than speeding, drunk or distracted drivers to worry about. While Los Angeles car accident lawyers recommend defensive driving to prevent accidents caused by drunk motorists or drivers on their cell phones, it will do little to prepare you for a hammer headed towards your car at 65 mph. Road debris in California contributes to a high number of accidents every year, although the exact number is hard to determine. That’s because in most of these accidents, the driver of the vehicle that drops the cargo, is not even aware that objects from the vehicle have fallen on the freeway.
In Los Angeles, the California Highway Patrol is kept busy removing cargo, objects and debris on highways. The kind of objects that the CHP is called upon to remove can be varied, and range from furniture and appliances to tools. Often, vehicles that offload objects are being driven by motorists on a move between apartments.
The main cause for an object falling off a vehicle is improper or inadequate securing of the load. At freeway speeds, a single rope holding a couch together can snap in an instant, causing the couch to go flying off the vehicle and onto the road, and into some other vehicles nearby.
The toll from these road debris-related accidents, is heavy. Most times, these accidents occur when motorists are trying to avoid the debris and swerve suddenly, losing control of their vehicle and crashing into other vehicles nearby. In other cases, serious injuries are caused when the debris flies through the windshield of nearby cars, injuring occupants. Serious injuries can result when even a small pebble flies through a windshield at 65 mph. Holding drivers responsible for accidents caused by debris from their vehicles can be a challenge, but not impossible.
