Brandon Joshua Steele, Rose Loree Alexander Killed in Accident in Eastland County, TX
Eastland County, TX -- A single-vehicle collision crash left Brandon Joshua Steele and Rose Loree Alexander dead Saturday, January 21, 2017 in Eastland County, TX.
The incident took place about 2:32 a.m. on IH-20, according to the report.
It appears the vehicle, driven by Ms. Alexander, was headed east on IH-20 when it collided with the median. The vehicle was sent airborne, colliding with a concrete bridge support. Ms. Alexander and her passenger, Mr. Steele, were killed at the scene of the incident. The report claims the driver was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash, but the passenger was not.
The cause of the incident is unclear, but the report stated the weather conditions were dry.
The official investigation is currently underway, and authorities hope to learn more as it concludes.
There was no further information made available.
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Commentary
In these types of single-vehicle accidents, people are often quick to blame the driver. Short of other potential factors, the driver takes the brunt of the blame. This often a reasonable opinion, as most single-vehicle accidents are caused by driver error; texting and other distractions, driver fatigue, etc. But, this isn't always the case. There have plenty of high-profile cases recently that highlight that there are a myriad of mechanical failure that can lead to fatalities or serious injury.
Though there have been many advances in automobiles--specifically in the area of making them safer for the general public--there are still vehicles on the road that may be prone to catastrophic failure.
A prime example is the recent case of General Motors and the issue of faulty ignition switches. Specific GM vehicles were equipped with an ignition switch that would cut power to the vehicle while it was still in motion. This means all the functions requiring power--power steering, braking functions, air bag, etc.--were left disabled. As you can easily imagine, this could be catastrophic for a vehicle traveling at a higher rate of speed. The mechanical failure unfortunately lead to 124 deaths and 234 injuries.
The big question here is, how many of these accidents were initially thought to be driver error when in actuality, the faulty ignition was to blame?
The fact of the matter is, while the majority of single-vehicle accidents are related to driver error, it is always worth reviewing the details through a more thorough, subjective microscope. To plug in our own assumptions amounts to a disservice to victims and those they leave behind.
--Grossman Law Offices
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