Personal Injury

Published on: May 13, 2009

Soledad Tour Bus Accident Caused By Driver Error, CHP Officials Say

By Brian Chase

A preliminary report released by the California Highway Patrol states that driver error was to blame for a fatal Soledad tour bus accident on April 28, 2009, which killed five people. According to an Associated Press news report, an investigation shows that the Orion Pacific tour bus’ driver, 69-year-old John Egnew of Corona, failed to negotiate a curve on a Highway 101 overpass in Soledad, causing the bus to hit a guard rail and overturn. The bus was carrying 34 French tourists and a Canadian tour guide when the bus accident occurred.

Four of those killed were French nationals. Egnew, who was reportedly not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown through the windshield and died. The CHP report says Egnew was not driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and that his toxicology tests came back negative. Investigators have also determined that the bus had no mechanical problems and road or weather conditions were not factors in this fatal Soledad bus crash.

In this California bus accident, from an investigator’s point of view, it is very unfortunate the driver himself was among the deceased. I’m sure this made the investigation all the more complex. However, now that a determination has been made that the bus accident in Soledad was the bus driver’s fault, the Orange County-bases tour bus company could be held liable.
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Published on: May 11, 2009

Riverside County Motorcycle Accident Kills One

By Brian Chase

Dario Moreno, 30, of Rancho Santa Margarita, was killed in a Riverside motorcycle accident after he struck a sedan on the Ortega (74) Highway near the Lookout Roadhouse the morning of May 9, 2009, The Orange County Register reports. Moreno was apparently riding a 2006 Honda motorcycle when the fatal Lake Elsinore motorcycle accident occurred, California Highway Patrol officials said. Moreno was taken to a Wildomar hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly after the motorcycle crash.

My heart goes out to the family and friends of Dario Moreno, who was tragically killed in this motorcycle-car accident. I offer my deepest sympathies to everyone who knew and loved this man. Please keep them in your prayers.

According to California Highway Patrol’s 2007 traffic accident statistics, there was one death and 11 injuries involving motorcycle accidents in Lake Elsinore. In Riverside County as a whole, 41 fatalities and 562 injuries were reported as a result of motorcycle accidents in 2007.
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Published on: May 6, 2009

Los Angeles County Pedestrian Accidents Causes Three Injured in Two Separate Accidents

By Brian Chase

Three people suffered personal injuries in two separate May 4, 2009 Los Angeles pedestrian accidents. According to an article in the Glendale News Press, the first pedestrian accident occurred in the 600 block of Colorado Street when a man was struck by a driver as he was walking to his car, which was parked on the street. The motorist did not stop to help the injured man and fled the scene. Police later apprehended the hit-and-run suspect whom they identified as Esther Zapeda-Ortiz. She was arrested on suspicion of felony hit-and-run and driving under the influence of alcohol. The victim was taken to the hospital with personal injuries.

The second Los Angeles pedestrian accident occurred the same afternoon when two pedestrians sitting on a bus bench were injured as a result of a pedestrian-car collision at Brand Boulevard and Los Feliz Road. A motorist driving a Honda Fit was making a left turn from Los Feliz to Brand when she pulled out in front of a Toyota minivan. The Toyota driver swerved to avoid a head-on collision, but instead hit a curb and struck the bus bench injuring the two pedestrians. The two pedestrians and the driver of the Honda were taken to the hospital with injuries.
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Published on: May 5, 2009

Anaheim Hills Car Accident Versus Dump Truck Injures Six

By Brian Chase

Six people were personally injured the afternoon of May 4, 2009 in an Anaheim Hills car accident after a dump truck lost its brakes and struck several vehicles at the intersection of Imperial Highway and Santa Ana Canyon Road, The Orange County Register reports. Anaheim police officials said the white dump truck traveling north on Imperial hit a Toyota Camry on the driver’s side. That man who was seriously injured had to be cut out of the vehicle using the jaws of life. The truck also hit three other vehicles — a Honda CR-V, a Honda Accord and a Honda Odyssey van. Out of the six people injured, three needed to be hospitalized.

It’s indeed the miracle that the driver of the Toyota Camry who was hit by the dump truck survived this horrible Orange County car crash. According to the Anaheim Police Department’s spokesman, the truck hit the Camry on the driver’s side and crushed it so that the distance between the two front doors was reduced to 16 inches. This Anaheim Hills car accident could have easily ended up in catastrophic injuries or fatalities. Thank God it didn’t! I wish this victim and the other injured victims the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.
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Published on: May 4, 2009

Orange County Pedestrian Accident Fatally Injuries One

By Brian Chase

The Orange County Coroner identified a man who was killed in a Garden Grove pedestrian accident as 30-year-old William Mendoza of Anaheim. According to an article in The Orange County Register, the fatal car accident occurred the morning of May 1, 2009 when Mendoza was struck and severely injured by a vehicle near the intersection of Chapman Avenue and Harbor Boulevard. Mendoza was hit by a sport utility vehicle that was going east on Chapman, Garden Grove police officials said. Mendoza was taken to UCI Medical Center where he later died.

The driver of the SUV, who has not been identified, remained at the scene and talked to police. He was not cited or arrested pending an investigation. Police are not yet sure whether Mendoza was in the crosswalk at the time of the fatal pedestrian accident. If you saw this Garden Grove pedestrian accident or have any information about it, please call Investigator Jason Perkins at 714-741-5823.

I offer my deepest sympathies to the family and friends of William Mendoza for their heartbreaking loss. Please keep them in your prayers.

According to the California Highway Patrol’s 2007 Statewide Integrated Traffic Reporting System, there were 49 personal injuries reported in Garden Grove involving pedestrian accidents. In Orange County, 41 fatalities and 726 injuries were reported in 2007 as a result of pedestrian accidents.
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Published on: May 3, 2009

Perris Tour Bus Accident Injures 25

By Brian Chase

A Riverside County tour bus accident on the 215 Freeway the afternoon of May 2, 2009 injured 25 people and at least eight suffered critical injuries, according to an article in The Desert Sun. The Inland Empire Stages Ltd. bus was returning to Colton from a San Diego area casino when it veered to the right crossing two lanes and crashed into a cinder-block wall. California Highway Patrol investigators are looking into what caused the 56-year-old bus driver to lose control of the 2003 MCI E-Series Renaissance Coach, which was northbound on the freeway with 27 passengers.

The eight victims who were critically injured were taken to area hospitals. There is no word on how these victims are doing. This Riverside County bus crash occurred three days after a similar bus accident in Soledad took the lives of four French tourists and bus driver, 69-year-old John Agnew of Corona. That investigation is still continuing.
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Published on: March 20, 2009

Orange County Industrial Accident

By Brian Chase

Orange County Industrial Accident Kills Two Workers

Two employees at a Rancho Santa Margarita manufacturing plant were killed and two others were seriously injured in an explosion the night of March 19, 2009, The Orange County Register reports. The explosion occurred just after 11:30 p.m. at Solus Industrial Innovators located in an industrial area at 30152 Aventura Ave. The powerful blast injured two employees who were standing outside the building, Orange County firefighters found two other employees dead inside the building. The injured workers were taken to an area hospital. Investigators say an industrial process water heater may have been the cause of the fatal explosion.

My heart goes out to the families, friends and co-workers of these two workers who were killed on-the-job. I offer my deepest condolences to them. I hope the two other workers did not suffer major injuries. I wish them the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.

According to the California Department of Occupational Safety and Health’s (CAL/OSHA) industrial accident statistics for 2005, 14 workers died that year of fires and explosions at their workplace or manufacturing facilities. Totally, 253 deaths relating to industrial accidents were reported in California in the year 2005.
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Published on: March 1, 2009

Scaffolding Company Fined in San Diego Fatal Scaffolding Accident

By Brian Chase

A scaffolding company was responsible for the collapse of a wooden walkway cover in downtown San Diego that killed one man and injured 14 others in August, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health has ruled after a lengthy investigation. According to this news report in the San Diego Union-Tribune, Paramount Scaffold Inc. will be fined $10,120 for two serious violations of state safety regulations. The company created a hazard when workers stacked scaffolding planks and metal frames against the pedestrian canopy.

The August 28, 2008 San Diego wrongful death scaffolding collapse incident sent many to the hospital and critically injured 49-year-old Taylor Allen, who died February 12, 2009 of injuries he suffered. The company erected the canopy to protect pedestrians from debris from construction of an apartment complex on Imperial Avenue. Cal-OSHA’s report said four Paramount Scaffolding workers stacked planks and frames against the walkway the morning of Aug. 28. Later in the morning a crane operator saw the walkway buckling under the weight of the planks and warned others, but nothing was done about it. At about 12:20 p.m. the walkway collapsed.
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Published on: February 27, 2009

Worker Injured at Grapevine Power Plant

By Brian Chase

A worker at a Grapevine power plant near Bakersfield suffered serious on the job personal injuries after he took a 20-foot fall from an internal walkway inside an air filtration unit, according to this news report. This work-related injury accident occurred the morning of February 23, 2009 at the Pastoria Power Plant in Grapevine. The worker was apparently in the process of changing the filters when the accident happened.

My heart goes out to this worker, who was injured while on-the-job. I hope his injuries were not catastrophic and wish him the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.

According to Cal/OSHA’s Web site, there were 453 fatal industrial accidents in California during the year 2005. About 110 of these accidents occurred in an industrial facility. Most of the accidents also had to do with malfunctioning or badly-maintained equipment.
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Published on: February 26, 2009

Pit Bull Dog Attacks Still Rampant in Different Parts of the Country

By Brian Chase

I came across this blog posted by Dogsbite.org that talks about two dog attack victims – both adults — in Texas who got their eye ripped out in separate pit bull dog bite attacks. The first incident apparently occurred in Houston on February 22, 2009 when a man named Junior lost an eye after two pit bulls broke out of a kennel and attacked him in the front yard of his neighbor’s home. It was so gruesome that Junior’s eye was popping out of its socket! Neighbors also said the dog chewed out a part of his face.

A similar incident happened in Dallas where two people were seriously injured after two pit bulls that had gotten out of their yard, attacked them. The victims – Helen Fuller and Clarence Webber – were hospitalized. Helen Fuller is expected to lose an eye and her brother says that he knows her life “is going to be changed from this point.” She also suffered severe facial injuries. In the Dallas dog attack case, the pit bulls were picked up by animal control for roaming in the neighborhood, but were later returned to their owner.
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