August 26, 2015
Dale and Teresa Erickson suffered fatal injuries from an accident involving loose hay bales that fell from a nearby semi truck. This type of violation could have been caught in a routine roadside safety inspection. Unfortunately, these inspections aren’t occurring as often as they should.
Thousands of trucks go through weigh stations each year, with only a handful stopped for inspections. According to the Minneapolis Star, 21 percent of inspected vehicles were placed out of service last year. Kansas City attorney Jeff Burns provided expertise on the subject matter. “Think of that: One in every five trucks … shouldn’t be on the road,” said Burns. “What would you do if the FAA said … 20 percent of these shouldn’t have been flying?”
Many operating trucks haven’t been inspected for years, causing accidents such as the one that killed the Ericksons.