New Jersey Teen Killed in Tractor Trailer Rear End Crash | Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

An eighteen year-old man in Bridgewater, NJ died last week in a fiery wreck when his pickup truck was rear ended by a tractor trailer.

New Jersey State Police stated that the pickup truck was stopped at a red light on Route 22 in Green Brook, NJ when a tractor trailed slammed into it in the rear. The wreck occurred at 3 am. The violence of the collision caused the pickup truck to burst into flames.

A bystander tried to pull the young man from the burning wreck, but was not successful. That man was injured and was taken to a local hospital for burns.

We have seen these types of tragic rear end wrecks involving tractor trailers quite often in our work as truck accident attorneys in Virginia over the years. One of the most common reasons that tractor trailers crash is excessive speed. According to the FMCSA, if tractor trailers limited their speed to 65 miles per hour, crashes could be reduced by 50%.

Recent studies have found that up to 23% of truck crashes involve a speeding driver, or a driver who is driving too fast for conditions, such as at night or in bad weather.

All truck drivers need to pay careful attention to the road at all times and drive at posted speed limits. A tractor trailer can weigh as much as 80,000 pounds, and it takes a long time for one to come to a complete stop. If a truck slams into a stationary passenger vehicle, disaster usually occurs, such as in the tragic story above. We hope this sad accident is a lesson to all truck drivers out there.