Ashley Marie Lemons, Damien Bailey Injured in Truck Accident in Centre, AL
Centre, AL -- December 7, 2022, Ashley Marie Lemons and Damien Bailey were injured following an accident where a truck crashed into a care facility.
Investigators said that the crash took place at around 5:30 p.m. off the corner of Cedar Bluff Road and Lake Side Drive.
According to officials, a semi-truck traveling along Cedar Bluff somehow lost control and ran off-road. The truck crashed into a vehicle in the Cherokee Health and Rehab parking lot, pushing it into the building.
Ashley Lemons and Damien Bailey were extricated from the wreckage and taken to an area hospital. Bailey was later released, but Lemons was said to have undergone surgery.
Commentary on Ashley Lemons, Damien Bailey Truck Accident in Centre
UPDATE (December 9, 2022): In recent reports, Authorities say they believe the truck driver blacked out due to a medical condition. I happened to bring up health problems and work environment below just as a few possibilities, so these new claims aren't entirely unreasonable. But they still would warrant thorough investigations.
Not long ago, I handled a crash caused by a medical condition. Through our investigations, though, we determined the driver's emergency was inevitable due to their laundry list of health issues. That means their employer should have known someone would get hurt and prevent that driver from being behind the wheel of a multi-ton truck. Failing to do so meant they were too negligent to see the problem or too irresponsible to do anything about it.
I'm not saying that happened here, necessarily. Medical emergencies aren't often foreseeable. My point is simply that these new details don't at all change the need for thorough investigations to ensure the victims get the help they deserve.
ORIGINAL: Generally speaking, if a truck careens off-road and into the side of a building, it's a sign the truck driver messed up big time. Is that always true? Of course not. It's obviously most likely that the driver was just on their phone, speeding, or otherwise being reckless. While unlikely, though, a proper investigation needs to consider things like mechanical defects, health problems, hazardous work environments, etc. Catching those factors would be crucial, but even having clear evidence to rule them out is a vital step for victims and families. After all, there is almost always a company opposite them doing everything in their power to avoid responsibility. There are virtually countless ways their teams can shift the blame and cheat victims out of their rights. That's why I have articles like the one below to help inform people about these tactics and how to overcome them.
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