When Colorado motorists witness or come upon a collision, many will stop to provide any assistance they can to those involved. While doing so, they often end up in harm’s way since many accident scenes are in the lanes of travel. For some, what starts out as lending helping hands results in fatal motor vehicle accidents.
This is what happened to a 54-year-old Colorado woman on a recent Wednesday morning. According to the woman’s husband, as he and his wife traveled Interstate 76, they came upon a vehicle in the roadway that struck a deer. They stopped to help the motorist. The remains of a deer were found close to the scene.
As they did so, another vehicle came upon the scene and failed to stop. It crashed into the already damaged vehicle that hit the deer, and somehow, the woman was struck as well. Reports were not clear whether it was the second vehicle or whether the first disabled vehicle struck her after it was hit. The injuries she suffered in the impact were critical, and emergency medical personnel were unable to save her life. Officials say they still need to complete their investigation, especially since they remain unsure regarding whether the vehicle that struck the deer flipped over at some point.
While investigators work to put together the details of the accident, the woman’s husband may exercise his right to file a wrongful death claim against the party or parties deemed responsible for her death. With the right evidence, he may be able to establish that the negligence of another caused her death. If successful in that endeavor, damages seen in many fatal motor vehicle accidents may be awarded by the court.
Source: fortmorgantimes.com, “One dead in crash on I-76 west of Wiggins“, Paul Albani-Burgio, Dec. 6, 2017