Top 5 Car Crashes Involving Athletes

Athletes are some of the highest-paid people in the world. People excelling in their respective sporting events often get hundreds of thousands, even millions, of contracts from their team or sponsors. Given their high-paying jobs, it is almost automatic for them to own powerful or exotic drives to the envy of many. However, fame, fortune, and fast cars oftentimes don’t mix too well.

Here are top 5 crashes of some of the world’s most famous athletes:

·         Tom Brady’s Audi. Before the start of the 2010 National Football League (NFL) season, the hair-conscious quarterback crashed his Audi sedan where a driver ran a red light.

·         Michael Phelps’ Escalade. The record-breaking champion swimmer figured in an accident with his Cadillac SUV. The driver of the other car was sent in the hospital for minor injuries. He may be the best swimmer that there is, but as a driver? We don’t think so.

·         Usain Bolt’s BMW M3. He has been able run 27 mph perfectly, but for speeds higher than that, he can really be deadly. He lost control of his BMW M3 while on the roads. It’s a bit odd that the fastest man can’t handle an equally fast car well.

·         Tiger Woods’ Escalade. The pro-golfer may be good at making the golf ball go to where he wants it to be, the hole. The same cannot be said though with his 2009 Cadillac. After he pulled out of his driveway, he struck a fire hydrant and a tree. If only he could use his golfing talents to driving.

·         Dennis Rodman’s Range Rover rollover. The basketball star was known for his daredevil drives to save the ball.  The famed Bull might have basketball in mind when he had his Range Rover SUV tumbling upside down. Like in his games, Rodman got away with minimal scratches but his Range Rover is definitely heading the junkyard.

Driving Under Certain Conditions in the State of California

Every driver in California must be responsible with themselves while on the road, especially under specific conditions. If the weather is not fine or the sun has gone down, every driver must make certain adjustments to make themselves and other motorists feel comfortable with their driving. Here are some of certain outside conditions and the corresponding adjustments that drivers in California must do:

•    Driving amidst the fog. Drivers must drive slowly, turn the windshield wipers, and use low beam headlights. In a thick fog, it is best to pull off the road for a while. Drivers must wait for the fog to subside until they can see well.

•    Driving in darkness. When driving in the absence of artificial light sources such as lampposts, it is also advised to drive slowly. Drivers cannot see far ahead and they only have little time to step on the brakes for a hazard. When it rains at night, drivers must turn on the low beam headlights.

When driving at night, drivers must be aware of the pedestrians and bicyclists as they are much difficult to see on the road. Also, motorcyclists are hard to see at night because they only have a taillight. It is also important for drivers to know that highway construction happens mostly at night, and that they must proceed slowly when passing through such.

•    Driving under falling rain or snow. Oil and dust that accumulated on the pavements may cause the road to become slippery, especially when it rains or snows. It is important for drivers to proceed slowly and with caution at the first sign of rain, drizzle or snow. Windshield wipers must be turned on, as well as the low-beam headlights and the defroster.

How Pain and Suffering Damages Are Determined

Damages are referred to as an award given to a person as a form of compensation for a certain loss. This mostly applies in the aspect of law, particularly in personal injury. When a person sustains a significant injury that greatly affects his or her life in general, he or she can recover damages.

Most of the time, damages are usually determined in monetary value or in dollars. In a court decision or off-court settlement, the liable party who caused harm towards the injured person must provide the latter with the determined amount of compensation.

There are other forms of damages, though, which can be entitled to a person as compensation but, in essence, does not have a certain value in dollars. One of them under this criteria is the so-called “pain and suffering” damages. This is a legal term referring to the overall trauma of the victim’s physical and emotional aspects following a personal injury accident.

Law firms specializing in personal injury, as well as insurance companies, usually determine pain and suffering by taking a look at the following:

The nature and the type of injury the victim sustained;

The severity and pain the person endured; and

The expectation that a person may experience pain on a certain period of time.

Spinal Cord Injury: Early Symptoms that One Should Know to Avoid Further Complications

Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI’s) are often the result of vehicle crashes.  This form of injury debilitates the body since it impedes the movement of the victim. SCI is so lethal that it can lead to the eventual death of the person who sustained it.

SCI is a medically known as a bodily injury caused by an external force. This traumatic force causes the nerves of the spinal cord to be severed, which in turn leads to the disruption of nerve impulses sent to the brain and to the different parts of the body. 

The spine is the highway for neurological transmission, and once it is damaged, the body parts below it will fail to function as well. Those who have a dislocated or damaged spine may be paralyzed or may go in a coma. 

One of the places with the most number of vehicle crashes, which can lead to SCI’s, is the state of California, particularly the city of Los Angeles. Based on the statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 588 traffic fatalities had been reported in the area in 2009. 

It is not determined how many exactly sustained SCI from the said number of crashes, but it can be thought that these accidents may have also resulted in such injury. 

To avert the swift progression of SCI, immediate treatment is needed. Therefore, a motor vehicle accident victim should be informed of the initial symptoms of the ailments so they could seek medical assistance at once. This includes the following:

·         Pain from the spine

·         Inability to move any part of the body

·         Body tremors

·         Inability to feel changes in temperature

·         Muscle spasms

·         Difficulty breathing

Army Veteran Sues Federal Government for Causing Injury on His Genital

An Army veteran is claiming that the federal government deprived him of his manhood and ability to urinate. Michael D. Nash is a normal Army veteran except that his sex organ was frostbitten and infested by gangrene.

The cause? About 19 hours of being under wraps of ice packs.

Reports said that Nash entered Veterans Administration (VA) hospital to undergo penile implant operation and circumcision. Instead of leaving the hospital safely, he claims that the nurse applied ice packs on his groin for about 19 hours causing his penis to catch frostbite and gangrene and eventually resulting in partial amputation.

As a result of the incident, Nash initially pursued compensation through the Federal Tort Claims Act. Under this civil procedure, people who were wronged by the federal government are allowed to claim for compensations provided that they will not pursue a lawsuit until the claim is resolved.

Los Angeles Drivers at High Risk of Killing Pedestrians

The city of Los Angeles is known as a bustling metropolis. Not only does it have a very large number of people but it is also known for its usually heavy traffic volume. With roadways weaving inside and outside of the city, it is not surprising that traffic activity there is well-documented. In fact, this West Coast city has been regarded as one of the worst cities in the United States when it comes to dealing with long traffic backups.

Along with traffic activity, the city of Los Angeles, with its large population, experiences heavy day-to-day pedestrian activity similar to New York City in the East Coast. With such massive pedestrian activity, it is already known to many that accidents involving them and other motor vehicles are commonplace. In fact, drivers in Los Angeles kill pedestrians at a higher rate than any other drivers in the United States.

This conclusion was a result of the study conducted by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute. In the research study, it was revealed that pedestrian deaths in the Los Angeles area account for about one-third of all motor vehicle crash fatalities. This is nearly triple the 11.4 percent average of pedestrian accidents in the United States.

Prevalence of Traumatic Brain Injury in California

Brain injuries are prevalent across the State of California. This is brought by the high road activity rate within the place. Due to tourism, the roads in this state are often crowded with motorists who travel back and forth for vacation and parties. Many Americans would even agree that California has some of the best beaches and most fantastic sceneries in the entire country.

However, a planned and supposedly beautiful vacation experience in this area could likely end up in a devastating accident. Consequently, the records presented by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) prove this.

The NHTSA indicated that in 2009 alone, there were about 3,081 traffic fatalities that were recorded in the state. It even identified the city of Los Angeles as the one with the highest death rate because of road mishaps.

 

According to the National Institute of Neurogical Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), an estimated 50,000 people annually die on the road, while others survive but sustain life-long debilitating injuries. Accordingly, crash accident survivors should realize that they are prone to undiagnosed ailments, which they might have unknowingly sustained.

One of these is the Traumatic Brain Injury or TBI. It is defined as the effect of brutal force on the skull. The skull is fractured or some fragments would pierce the brain and cause internal bleeding. Cases of TBI differ from one another. A person may still sustain this injury once the brain bumps the inside of the skull without apparent fractures.

It is necessary for victims of crashes to have some knowledge regarding TBI cases. They could use this to assess if they have the same ailment and if they needed to file a complaint against the person who caused the accident to be able to pay for the medication. Accordingly, here are some of the early symptoms of TBI:

Tips to Prevent Drowsy Driving

People’s lifestyles these days do not seem to favor adequate sleep. As it is, work needs to be done continually to cope with the demands of this fast-paced world. Because of this, many often compromise sleep, let alone rest. The aftereffects of doing such could be at times devastating and could cost the loss of lives. Lack of sleep can lead to drowsiness, and combining this with driving is definitely fatal.

Doing such thing is known as drowsy driving. Many drivers, pedestrians, and passengers often get injured annually because of this. No one can escape the allure of sleep unless the driver suffers from insomnia. Drivers who fail to take some quality rest are more likely to get involved in accidents since they could unknowingly doze off while behind the wheel.

Here are the following tips on how motorists can avoid drowsy driving:

·         Take someone along while driving. Having someone inside the vehicle just to have a conversation with distracts the thought of sleeping. This is an effective way to temporarily forget the need to take a nap or fall asleep. Moreover, if that person is also capable of operating the vehicle, the driver may switch places with him or her in case the former gets sleepy.

·         Take breaks frequently. If going on a long-distance trip, it would be helpful if the driver would take breaks habitually. Doing so relives the feeling of fatigue, which prevents drowsiness. The driver would also regain the energy that he or she needs for driving.

About Basic Street Safety for Children

Pedestrian accidents are known to have seriously injured or killed many people, despite only accounting to around 13 percent of all motor vehicle accidents every year. In terms of age group, though, children are highly at risk.

This trend, however, seemed to have declined. In 1975, children ages 0 to 12 had the third highest rate; come 2010, the rate was at its lowest, with a decrease of about 89 percent.

Basically, young pedestrians are not that adept when it comes to crossing the road or even just walking on the sidewalk. They don’t perceive certain attributes such as distance, speed, and noise direction. This is why it is always important for adults to accompany their children every time they are traveling on foot, especially in the urban setting.

Accordingly, it is the adults’ responsibility of not only accompanying them around, but also teaching them basic street safety. Once they’ve learned how to cross the road and deal with vehicles safely, then they can walk the streets safely all by their lonesome in the near future.

As such, here are some ways on how adults can teach their children basic street safety:

California as One of the Worst Places for Driving and Possible Crash Injuries

 

The State of California is truly beautiful. For one, the beach cities all over this area promise paradise-like nature whilst it does not strip the vacationer of his or her urban lifestyle. Actually, because of California’s exquisite scenic spots, it can be one of the main candidates as one of the most beautiful places in the world. Nevertheless, like any paradise, the perks of going in the area also have its own set of disadvantages.  For the residents of California, it is the penchant for vehicle crashes.

Distressing as it may sound, this location has gained its notoriety through various news reports of vehicle crashes posted in different websites. According to available records, California is deemed as one of the worst places for driving. This information has leaked through the internet and records were present to prove this problem. In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) even affirmed this through the rates of fatalities within this area at about 3,090 just in the year 2009.

Crashes could also lead to injuries, which in turn could lead to the disability of the victim or even eventual death. Many should realize that the minor injury that a person could sustain in this form of accident varies from wounds, bruises, and fractures.

However, many already get parts of their bodies amputated, while others suffer from spinal cord injuries, brain damages, or comatose. Through these ailments, the lives of the victims become affected and they may suffer from depression since they could not go back doing their past major life activities.

It is then crucial to seek the assistance of experienced personal injury lawyers. These lawyers have the capability of prosecuting the person, entity, or organization that is responsible for the injury of the victim. Accordingly, the victim may collect damages awards, which could be used to start over or to pay for the hospitalization.

The show the severity and the extent of the injuries that a person could suffer from accidents, here are among the effects of some of the injuries that could be inflicted by a crash:

Spinal cord injury

·         Difficulty in walking and maintaining balance

·         Urinary incontinence

·         Intense pain in the neck and back area

·         Weakness or paralysis in different body parts

·         Numbness and tingling in the toes

Brain damage

·         Blurred vision

·         Coma

·         Amnesia

·         Contusions and hematomas on the brain itself

·         Personality changes

·         Cognitive disabilities

·         Loss of consciousness

·         Dizziness

·         Paralysis

·         Epilepsy

·         Sensory changes

·         Confusion

Alleviating Current State of Wrongful Death Victims’ Families

People normally experience losses during their lifetime. However, such losses would be extremely painful if they were caused by the death of a family member. The excruciating pain could even be heightened if the death was caused by the negligent act of another person. One example of this is through motor vehicle accidents, of which the State of California is popular for.

Referring to California in such way may seem like a negative feedback for a place that is hailed for its scenic views and tourist spots. Actually, there is a direct relation between the mishaps in this place and naming the area as one of the best places for recreation.

One valid explanation is that since there are many nightclubs or party sites all over the area, many drivers also tend to get drunk. In turn, most of them fall into accidents along with other innocent motorists. Those who may be victimized by the event could include passengers or pedestrians. The families of some of these people who died in an unacceptable circumstance may have relied on the deceased for financial support, but now they are practically left to fend for their own.

In these difficult times, the family of the deceased is advised to seek help from a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer. Such professional can help the surviving family members by filing for them a formal complaint in court. Such complaint will be against the liable party who caused the accident. If the family of the deceased wins the case, they will achieve monetary support through the damages awards.

Indifference of California Residents: The Result of Prevalent Mishaps

There is a lot of personal injury cases filed in the State of California yearly because of its high vehicle accident rates. Oftentimes, personal injury cases lead to the severe injuries of people who were involved in this form of mishap.

Almost daily, an incident of vehicle collision would be reported. This made the residents of such state indifferent to mishaps.

Vehicle accidents, once they are filed in court, are often classified under personal injury. Personal injury, on the other hand, is defined as the damage done to someone’s body, mind, and emotions. This is often founded on proving that the person was negligent. Accordingly, any wrongful act that led to the injury of others may be classified under negligence, be it intentional or accidental.

Before filing a personal injury claim, it is important that the complainant have prior knowledge or an assessment regarding the percentage of the payment that would be given to the insurance companies. This is done as a counter measure so that the victim is assured that he or she will receive a justifiable amount.

Moreover, it is important to inform the victim that insurance companies would often trick claimants in order to lessen their payment cost. Here are some of the categories to get to the arrived total cost of the whole claim:

Taking the Blame off Truck Drivers in Vehicle-to-vehicle Crashes

Most of the time, the truck driver earns the blame in an accident involving a truck and another passenger vehicle. People would believe that the truck was the one liable due to its sheer size. But, contrary to what most people believe, truck drivers sometimes drive more carefully than private vehicle drivers.

All of the negative perceptions regarding trucks were refuted by agencies of the government that handle road concerns. Apparently, the truck drivers are actually the ones who fall victims to careless motorists who have no regard for their life or those of other people. This is according to the research conducted by the Federal Highway Administration’s Office of Motor Carriers (OMC).

In addition, OMC stated that in 2009 alone, there were already some 3,197 fatal crashes involving trucks. To show that the liability mostly resides on the violations committed by private motorists, the OMC also presented the following findings as to private motorists’ driving conducts:

Classification and Effects of Spinal Cord Injury on Road Accident Victims

Victims of road accidents have the biggest probability of sustaining severe injuries, one of which is the Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). According to the Foundation for Spinal Cord Injury Prevention, Care, and Cure, there are around 259, 000 people who are living with SCI. This further ranges from 229,000 up to 306,000 individuals.

This data is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which affirms that 46 percent of the occurrences were brought by motor vehicle accidents.

The disturbing thing about this is that recently, the rate of motor vehicle accidents had gone up. Based on the data presented by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there have been 30,196 fatal crashes throughout the nation. Incidentally, the state with the most number of accidents is California. 

Its main city, Los Angeles, is likewise considered as the one of places with the highest incidences of traffic casualties, with around 561 cases as of 2010. This opens the possibility that there might also be a large number of SCI victims throughout California. 

To further inform those who would like to know more about SCI, it is actually classified by its completeness:

1.      Complete – All feeling or sensory as well as the ability to control movement are lost.

2.      Incomplete – There is still come sensory or motor function below the affected area. This has varying degrees.

Additionally, one way showoff showing how complex and wide ranging the effects of SCI is to enumerate the body functions that SCI negatively affects. This includes the following:

Severe Effects of TBI in Victims’ Lives

The State of California is known worldwide mainly for things: its beautiful sceneries, and the recurrence of vehicle crashes.

It seems that every day, there would have to be reports of traffic fatalities in there. That is why California is notorious for placing first in most casualty reports all throughout the United States. In fact, according to the statistics presented by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there had been about 3,434 traffic fatalities in the area just in 2008.

In line with this, a lot or California residents had already fallen victims to disabilities because of their involvement in traffic accidents. One of the most notable types of injury that could be sustained from such incidents is Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).

TBI is defined as the result of a sudden trauma that normally comes from motor vehicle crashes. During such mishaps, the resulting strong force damages the brain. This is when a foreign object pierces the skull and enters the brain. Meanwhile, it is also when bits of the skull penetrate the brain matter.

Traumatic Brain Injury is considered as one of the most debilitating ailments due to the severity of trauma that it brings. The victims of TBI could be paralyzed, be comatose, or have mental illness. In turn, they are forced to live solitary lives since they could not control their behavior or way of thinking. Moreover, the treatment for this disease is often expensive and most patients cannot afford the bills from their hospitalization.

With this predicament, a Los Angeles car accident attorney could help them greatly. This person could ensure that the victim would resume rehabilitation and treatment by getting damages awards from the person who caused the accident.

Conversely, to aid victims who suspect that they have sustained TBI because of their involvement in a recent accident, here are some of the TBI symptoms according to the Mayo Clinic:

·         Loss of memory

·         Lightheadedness

·         Blurred vision

·         Bad taste in the mouth

·         Fatigue

·         Ringing in the ears

·         Headache

·         Nausea

·         Loss of body balance

·         Focusing problems

·         Changes in mood

·         Unconscious for a moment

·         Confusion

·         Sleeping problems