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According to a recent study performed by Associated Press, traffic fatalities in drilling states, including Texas, have more than quadrupled since 2004. But wait . . . hasn’t the energy boom positively impacted our country? The increased production of oil and natural gas creates job, lifts local economies, and attracts manufacturers to the United States. However, our nation’s booming economy comes with a price—a spike in traffic facilities. Large trucks and heaving drilling equipment consume the streets of Texas drilling counties, increasing traffic fatalities by 18%.
The Hydraulic-Fracking Process Decreases Driver Safety
For the past century, Texas has been known for its thriving oil production, but a newly developed drilling technique, called hydraulic-fracking, makes Texas’s current boom different from those of the past. Fracking is the process of injecting high-pressure streams of water, chemicals, and sand into underground rock formation to release oil and gas. Delivering the necessary amounts of water, chemical, and sand to accurately frack rock requires 2,300 to 4,000 truck trips per well. Fracking floods streets with enormous eighteen-wheeler trucks, thereby decreasing driver safety and increasing the number of frackcidents (fracking accidents).
Recent Texas Frackcidents
Despite the spike in traffic fatalities, fracking companies continue to swim in huge profits. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has sought to reverse this trend by adopting a safety campaign called “Be Safe. Drive Smart,” which urges motorists to use extra caution when driving through energy work zones. However, TxDOT funds its campaign by partnering with wealthy oil and gas companies, failing to recognize that fracking companies—not safe motorists—are the root of most frackcidents.
In April 2014, Vilma Marenco was traveling home to Northeast Houston from her job in Humble, Texas when she was fatally struck by a fracking truck hauling pipe. The truck driver ran a red light and lacked insurance. See http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/article/Fracking-and-hydraulic-drilling-have-brought-a-5747432.php#/0.
A 19-year old Texas man suffered fatal injuries in 2012 after colliding with a drilling truck on his way to work. A month later, on the same road, three retired teachers died in another collision with a fracking truck. See http://powersource.post-gazette.com/powersource/features-powersource/2014/05/06/Fracking-making-traffic-deadlier/stories/201405060121
Two Parker County men have received damages totaling $11.7 million after a water hauler truck failed to obey traffic laws and struck their vehicle. See http://www.texassharon.com/2013/07/01/fracking-water-haulers-pay-11-7-million-in-financial-settlement-to-critically-injured-victims/
Are you a Frackcident Victim?
If you are a frackcident victim, we urge that you seek the help of a personal injury attorney who has experience tackling wealthy oil and gas companies. Refuse to allow these companies to bypass driver safety and fight to receive the compensation you deserve. John Gibson is a trial lawyer with over 15 years experience trying workers’ compensation, personal injury, products liability and on-the-job injury cases throughout the State of Texas.