Trucks often pose a greater risk on the road than other cars. This is unfortunately inevitable due to the sheer size and weight of these vehicles. Because of their builds, they are also more prone to certain types of accidents.
One unique crash that involves truckers is a jackknifing incident. These can come with a heavy cost of life and may jeopardize many drivers at once.
Jackknifing as a cause of fatal crashes
The Department of Transportation examines causes of fatal truck crashes. Many of these crashes happen due to jackknifing. Jackknifing occurs when the trailer end of a truck skids until it is no longer behind the cab. Instead, it is either at a 90 degree angle or even close to parallel with the cab. Most often, it ends up at an angle.
Jackknifing poses a great risk to all vehicles on the road at the time. The trailer can sweep a wide path across the road, knocking through many lanes at once. Any car in its path may end up hit. Some jackknifing trucks even end up in oncoming traffic. Needless to say, other vehicles do not stand a chance against something this size.
Why does jackknifing happen?
There are many causes of jackknifing. A truck could have an unbalanced load. The driver may hit an unexpected patch of ice with tires that are not up to the task. Poor maintenance of the fleet might have a hand. So can inattentive driving behavior. Regardless of the reason, jackknifing trucks endanger the driver and everyone else on the road. If you suffered injury due to a truck jackknifing, consider speaking to an attorney.