Many people drive the same Missouri roads every day without incident. However, it only takes one mistake to cause an accident. For instance, many head-on collisions here in the state and around the country happen when a driver fails to negotiate a curve.
The unidentified driver of a pickup truck was heading south on Highway 59. At the same time, another vehicle occupied by three people, including a 7-year-old boy, was approaching the pickup truck from the opposite direction. As the pickup entered a curve, it failed to stay in its lane.
When it entered the opposing lane of traffic, the pickup veered into the path of the northbound vehicle. Neither driver was able to avoid the head-on crash. The 28-year-old driver of the northbound vehicle and his 27-year-old passenger suffered fatal injuries at the accident scene. The boy in that car survived the crash, but suffered serious injuries. At last report, he remained hospitalized in critical condition.
Law enforcement officials are conducting an investigation to determine what factors led to the accident. The families of the deceased driver, his passenger and the critically injured child may make use of the details revealed by the accident report in civil actions seeking the recovery of monetary damages. As is the case in other head-on collisions, the families will be required to prove negligence on the other driver’s part in order for an award of damages to be considered by a Missouri court. If monetary damages are awarded, they may mitigate the expenses and other financial losses incurred due to this tragedy.
Source: fourstateshomepage.com, “McDonald County Fatal Accident”, Derek Smith, March 6, 2015
