Auto Accident Fatality in Richland Involving Ice

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For many years, I have been a Seattle auto accident lawyer and have become quite familiar with the many causes of car accidents in the state of Washington. To no surprise, one of the biggest contributors to fatal car crashes is the weather. Weather conditions have the ability to obscure the driver’s vision, take away tire traction, and create instability at high winds. However, one particular element contributes to around 4,500 fatal car accidents every winter season. The element to which I am referring is ice on the road. Going through the coldest months of the year, it is very important to understand the dangers that ice poses to Washington drivers.

January 25^th, at 6:30am there was a car accident involving a sheet of black ice that sent one man to the hospital with multiple broken bones and left another man dead. 36 year-old Rafael Santiago-Cruz of Richland was driving a Toyota Pickup Northbound on Taylor Flats Road. It was early in the morning and the previous night had sub-freezing temperatures. As he was driving over an irrigation canal overpass, his truck hit a patch of black ice and the pick-up began to fishtail. Upon crossing the overpass, he collided with a 2006 Acura Sedan coming from the opposite direction. Santiago-Cruz was killed at the scene of the accident while the driver of the Sedan, 68 year-old Morasch of Pasco was transported to Harborview Medical Center in critical condition. He sustained multiple injuries including two broken legs.

Auto Accident Fatality in Richland involving Ice

Mornings following nights with subfreezing temperatures are especially dangerous because most drivers don’t think about the ice that the weather may have left on the road. This element is difficult to see, particularly in the early daylight hours, and has claimed the lives of many unsuspecting drivers. Be sure to take note of road conditions before driving in the mornings.

This information is provided by Straight Talk Law, where you can order free information on Kennewick auto accidents, buying auto insurance in Washington, and other valuable legal information, offered as a public service by Seattle personal injury attorney and author Jason Epstein and his Washington auto accident, Tacoma motorcycle accident, and King County wrongful death law firm in Seattle, Washington.