A car accident lawyer in Maine reveals what you should know
A six-vehicle pile-up on Route 1 in Brunswick left three people injured, including one woman who had to be air-lifted to an emergency medical center.
The 23-year-old woman was flown from the crash site in a helicopter after sustaining life-threatening injuries in the late-August crash. She was injured when her vehicle was rear-ended by a box truck and pushed underneath a minivan.
Tragically, this terrible crash may have been caused by a distracted driver, according to reports by local media.
The collision was on a Wednesday morning on Route 1 between the Topsham Connector and Maine Street. The speed limit is 45 mph on this stretch in Brunswick. Police say the car accident happened when the woman attempted to slow down. A box truck carrying live lobsters allegedly plowed into the back of her car, jamming it under a minivan, and pushing that minivan forward into three other vehicles. Two of the other drivers in the crash were treated for minor injuries.
Multiple-vehicle accidents & serious injuries
There isn't much more information on what caused the Brunswick pile-up, but we do know that the Maine Department of Transportation has designated this stretch of the road as a "high crash location." According to the Maine DOT, there were 29 crashes on that roadway between 2016 and 2020, and nearly 13,000 vehicles use the road every day.
“We handle a considerable amount of crashes in that stretch,” Brunswick Chief of Police Scott Stewart said in the news article. “During heavy traffic volume time frames, traffic backs up from the merge onto Mill St. and Pleasant St. Most crashes are low-speed fender benders. We generally do not have high-speed crashes in that area.”
Overall, the cause and factors behind multiple-vehicle accidents are not always obvious. Research in this arena is lacking. Anecdotally, bad weather is often cited in pile-up crash reports.
What we do know is multi-vehicle car accidents are violent and often deadly. For victims, this type of crash can also be incredibly frustrating. Treating accident-related injuries is expensive. With so many vehicles involved, it may be difficult to figure out who is at fault. The Brunswick pile-up also includes a commercial truck, which adds its own layer of complexity as there are often multiple entities that have stakes in the crash's outcome (e.g., the trucking company, insurance companies, a third-party vendor).
Determining fault in a chain reaction pile-up
People often think that whichever vehicle is at the start of a chain reaction accident is responsible, but determining liability can be complex in a multi-vehicle crash. Evidence that may be used when determining fault includes:
- The police accident report
- Eyewitness testimony
- Pictures and/or video of the final position of all vehicles involved
- Property damage, including damage to the vehicles involved
- How close the vehicles were traveling near each other at the time of the collision
There are often multiple at-fault drivers in pile-up accidents and a lot of finger-pointing as people try to escape blame. The bottom line is, determining fault in multi-vehicle crashes requires a lot of resources to investigate and find/preserve evidence.
Legal help is available for Maine crash victims
If you were in a multi-vehicle crash, you can learn your legal rights and options by contacting our law firm for a free case review. Our attorneys have the knowledge, experience, and resources to handle every aspect of your claim and fight for every dollar you deserve in financial compensation. We also work cases on contingency, which means there's no upfront money required to hire us, and you pay no legal fees unless we win.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation with an experienced Maine car accident lawyer. We have offices in Portland and Waterville, Maine, and would be happy to discuss your potential legal case.