A wheelchair-bound individual may be more vulnerable to accidents than other pedestrians. These disabled people may struggle to avoid collisions in the same way as a healthy individual who can dodge incoming vehicles with relative ease. Commercial trucks may pose particularly serious hazards to wheelchair-bound people, and this was made clear after a recent collision in Georgia.
Dump Truck Strikes and Kills Wheelchair-Bound Individual in Acworth
In December of 2024, a dump truck struck a disabled person who had fallen off their wheelchair in Acworth. Police say that both the dump truck and the wheelchair-bound individual were heading in the same direction down Cobb Parkway prior to the accident. At some point, the man fell off his wheelchair for unknown reasons. He was lying on the road when the dump truck approached shortly after his fall. The dump truck then impacted the victim, sending him flying forward and causing fatal injuries. First responders arrived on the scene and pronounced the victim dead.
Some wheelchair-bound individuals may be legally allowed to operate on roads in Georgia. This is an important point, as some may assume that this victim had no right to be on the road alongside a dump truck. In many cases, there is no real difference between a bicycle and a wheelchair. Both may be capable of reaching similar speeds, and some motorized wheelchairs or mobility scooters may qualify as “low-speed vehicles” under Georgia law. Perhaps most importantly, both bicycles and wheelchairs may be allowed to operate in bike lanes.
In many cases, sidewalks may be non-existent or in poor condition. A wheelchair rider might determine that the bike lane is the only viable option, especially when sidewalks are riddled with cracks and potholes.
Why Do Commercial Trucks Pose Such a Threat to Wheelchair-Bound Individuals?
Wheelchair-bound individuals may be particularly vulnerable to commercial trucks for various reasons. Perhaps most notably, wheelchairs have lower heights compared to walking people. When in a sitting position, wheelchair riders may be difficult or downright impossible to spot for truckers, bus drivers, and anyone else operating a large commercial vehicle in Georgia. Because a trucker sits so high off the ground, they may be totally unaware of wheelchair riders crossing down below or traveling in bike lanes.
Trucks have considerable blind spots directly in front of the hood. This poses a hazard not only for wheelchair-bound individuals but also for small children, seniors, cyclists, and anyone else with a relatively small stature. Even the tallest people may fall within these blind spots when crossing in front of a truck.
Truckers must be extremely cautious when traveling through residential areas, especially when they stop at intersections or stop signs. It is all too easy to become distracted, and a trucker must carefully scan both sides of the intersection for anyone crossing in front of their vehicle. It is all too easy to come to a “rolling stop” before moving forward and inadvertently crushing a pedestrian.