Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog
Head-on traffic accidents are one of the more dangerous and potentially fatal of all vehicle collisions on our undivided highways. While urban accidents can include head-on crashes as well, the higher speeds of rural roads make these kinds of auto wrecks much more life threatening. As Maryland injury and automobile accident lawyers, our firm understands the severity of such crashes and the injuries that passengers can sustain.
Recently, a young Parsonsburg, MD, man was killed when his car unexplainably veered into the path of another vehicle on Maryland’s Route 364 just east of Esham Road in Wicomico County. Police reports indicate that the man’s Mercury Sable crossed the centerline and collided with a Ford pickup truck traveling westbound at that time.
According to news reports, 19-year-old Shawn Michael Williams from Parsonsburg was traveling eastbound on Route 346 when he apparently lost control and his car crossed into the path of an oncoming Ford F-250. According to Maryland State Police Williams not wearing his seatbelt at the time of the accident and pronounced dead at the scene.
Police reported that speed did not appear to be a factor in the accident, nor were drugs or alcohol contributing factors, either. Defective equipment may have played a role, but no information was available at the time. The driver of the Ford pickup truck, 20-year-old Travis William Dennis of Pittsville, was taken to Peninsula Regional Medical Center for treatment and later released, according to reports.
Police reports show that both of the drivers were traveling alone in their respective vehicles. Sadly, this latest fatality happened during a period of relatively low traffic deaths in the county, at least according to the most recent data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), whose data shows that fatal crashes in Wicomico County decreased from 18 in 2007 to 14 in 2008.
For comparison, Worcester County reported an increase in fatal crashes (11 in 2007 versus 18 in 2008), while Somerset County reported one fatal crash in 2007 and one in 2008, based on NHTSA information.
Parsonsburg man killed in collision, DelMarVa.com, November 28, 2009