Flagler County, Florida Sheriff's Officer Injured in Traffic Accident With Tractor Trailer
A sergeant with the Flagler County Sheriff's Office was seriously injured when he was hit by a semi truck according to an article on News4Jax.com. It was reported that Sergeant Michael Van Buren was hit by a tractor trailer while on his motorcycle responding to a different traffic accident.
This kind of traffic crash raises a few issues that are often addressed in personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits. There are many motorcycles on the roads in Florida, and it is up to other drivers to look out for them and make sure the path is clear before turning or switching lanes. This is particularly true for drivers of semi trucks which take up so much space and can cause so much damage. Additionally, drivers are responsible for looking out for police officers, firefighters and emergency medical personnel who are responding to accidents and other emergencies. Drivers have a duty to slow their vehicles and/or move them out of the way of police and other appropriate vehicles responding to emergencies. Due to the dangers faced by police officers who pull drivers over for traffic violations and stop to assist disabled vehicles, a law was passed that requires drivers to slow down or change lanes away from the stopped police officer to reduce the risk of police officers being hit while working on the side of the road.
