There are many variables to automobile accidents. These variables include the types of vehicles involved in accidents, contributing factors behind the car wreck, types of injuries and what kind of property damage occurs.
There are also variations in the types of auto accidents. Some of the most common types of car accidents include rear end collisions, side impact wrecks, multi-vehicle pile ups, head on accidents and rollovers. Rollover accidents in particular are very serious. These usually cause significant damage to property, as well as serious injury. Unfortunately, a fatality is often times seen as a result of a rollover auto accident.
What is a rollover accident?
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration attributes most rollover accidents to auto crashes wherein one vehicle is taller, such as an SUV, pickup truck or van. These are very complex accidents with two primary contributing factors, according to the car accident lawyers at Cantor Crane. The first contributing factor can be alcohol while the second is speeding.
The majority of rollover accidents occur when one vehicle tries to turn or is turned too sharply or at a high rate of speed. Instability during that turn causes the vehicle to roll over. Most of these accidents only involve one vehicle. But they are among the deadliest of accident types for passengers of SUVs, minivans or trucks. In the average of 280,000 rollover accidents that happen each year, about 10,000 people die.
How do most injuries occur in rollover accidents?
Rollover accident injuries are often caused by the person’s physical impact with internal parts of the vehicle. External objects that protrude into the vehicle also cause many injuries. Such objects may be trees, traffic signs, guardrails or other solid items on or near the roadway. Vehicle occupants are also often injured by being thrown out of their car, SUV, van or truck.
The severity or incidence of these injuries is often related to variables such as:
- Whether vehicle occupants were wearing seatbelts
- Amount of head room in the car
- Vehicle roof strength and security
- Number of vehicle occupants
- Number of vehicles involved in the accident
What type of injuries are caused by rollover accidents?
Injuries that passengers sustain during rollover accidents can vary. They may be distributed all over the body, but most often affect the head and neck. Arms, Legs, chest and abdomen are also frequently injured.
Rollover accidents causing head or neck injury frequently result in that passenger having a traumatic brain injury, skull fracture or concussion. Rollover accidents are one of the leading causes of traumatic brain injuries. More than half of traumatic brain injuries are traced back to an automobile accident.
A traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurs when the brain collides with the inside of the skull. This is caused by the shear force of the accident. TBIs can also occur when the skull is penetrated or fractured during an auto crash. Sometimes, TBI results from blunt trauma. Blunt trauma is when the head is forced at a high rate of speed into a stationary object, such as a windshield, crushed roof or solid ground. Ejected passengers often suffer TBIs when they make contact with the ground after being thrown from the vehicle.
If an impact or hit on the head is not strong enough to hurt the brain, the cranial bone can break. This is called a skull fracture. There are many different forms of skull fractures, named according to how the fracture appears in X-rays or during an initial visual exam. Skull fracture types include:
- Closed
- Open
- Basal
- Depressed
- Greenstick
- Comminuted
- Linear
A fractured skull may or may not break the skin. Bone may emerge from skin tissue and be visible to the naked eye. Or an indentation can occur with bone pushing into the brain cavity. Skull fractures can occur from impact, pressure, penetration or other types of injuries.
What should be done after a rollover accident?
When someone has suffered an injury during a rollover accident, it is critical that medical attention is sought. Symptoms often appear much later, after the accident has been resolved. Symptoms of injuries include:
- Nausea
- Headaches
- Blurred vision
- Vomiting
- Irritability
- Confusion
- Loss of balance
- Unconsciousness
- Excessive drowsiness
If you or someone you love has been in a rollover accident and suffered head injury, discussing your situation and injuries with an experienced rollover injury lawyer is the right choice for protection of your best interest and legal rights.
