Florida Distracted Driving Accident Kills Two Horses and Injures Riders
Recently, a crash in the Broward County community of Southwest Ranches provided yet another example of the dangers of distracted drivers for those on the road in Florida, both those in other vehicles as well as those who share the road with motor vehicles, be it pedestrians, cyclists or horseback riders. Details reflected in a Sun-Sentinel report on the crash note that a driver had dropped his cell phone onto the floorboard of his Toyota Tundra pick-up truck and was reaching down to pick the phone up when he crashed into two nearby individuals who were on horseback. The crash occurred at approximately 4:00 p.m. in the afternoon. The riding instructor was riding a horse and leading another horse carrying a nine-year-old girl. The girl’s father was walking alongside the two on foot as they crossed Griffin Road, a major thoroughfare in the rural area of Broward County where the accident took place, when the pick-up truck crashed into the two riders and their horses.
Due to the impact, both the instructor and the nine-year-old riding student were thrown from their respective horses and suffered serious injuries in the process. Both horses also died as a result of the impact. The riding instructor, 62, was taken by motor vehicle to a nearby hospital for treatment and suffered a concussion, cuts to her left foot as well as a broken rib, and several broken bones in her back. The young girl was airlifted to a nearby hospital for treatment for her injuries, but details regarding her condition after the accident were not released due to her age. She was wearing a helmet at the time, however, which police who responded to the scene interviewed by local reporters believe may have saved her life. Despite being only 24 years old, the pick-up truck driver had a checkered history of numerous driving issues, with eight traffic citations in the prior 4.5 years. These included citations in the past year for driving more than 20 mph over the speed limit twice in February 2018, less than six months prior to this incident.
Distracted Driving in Florida: A Major Problem That Will Likely Only Get Worse
Pursuant to 2016 statistics from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FHSMV), distracted driving resulted in nearly 50,000 crashes in Florida in 2016, the latest year for which complete data was available. This equated to nearly five crashes per hour, every hour, as a result of distracted driving. This is an increase of 26 percent in the short time since 2013. Distracted driving further resulted in 3,500 serious bodily injuries and 233 fatalities in the Sunshine State in 2016. This represents a disturbing trend that will likely only get worse as the number of young drivers who have been raised with an addiction to their mobile phones increases. Indeed, the FHSMV statistics reflected that drivers aged 20-24 were the age-group which was responsible for the highest number of crashes caused by distracted drivers in Florida in 2016, followed closely behind by drivers in the 25-29 and 15-19 age-groups.
Contact The Experienced Personal Injury Attorneys at Schwed, Adams & McGinley, P.A. if You or a Loved One Have Been Injured in a Motor Vehicle Accident Involving a Distracted Driver
Our experienced personal injury attorneys have more than 150 years of combined practice representing victims of all sorts of motor vehicle accidents, including accidents involving distracted drivers. We have represented those who have been injured or the family members and loved ones of those who have been killed in any number of scenarios involving the negligence of a Florida motorist, including distracted drivers and drivers who have hit pedestrians, bicyclists and others who were lawfully sharing the road. No matter what the scenario in which our client was injured or killed, we will do everything we can to obtain justice for our clients, using every tool at our disposal under Florida law. Therefore, if you, a family member or a loved one has been injured or killed in a Florida motor vehicle accident, no matter the circumstances that caused the accident, contact our experienced personal injury attorneys today at 877-694-6079 or contact@schwedlawfirm.com for a free consultation.