Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Runaway trailer injures woman, three children

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

May 1, 1998

Edition: ARLINGTON AM
Section: ARLINGTON
Page: 2

Runaway trailer injures woman, three children
Author: Brian D. Crecente; Star-Telegram Writer

Dateline: ARLINGTON

Article Text:

A woman and three children were injured yesterday when the van they were in was hit by a runaway trailer.

Van driver Rhonda Gerrity was taken to Harris Methodist Fort Worth, where she was listed in serious but stable condition last night.

Andrew Gerrity, 4, was taken to Cook Children's Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.

An 8-year-old passenger, whose name was not released, was taken to Arlington Memorial Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.

Rachel Finley, 15, was taken to Harris Methodist Fort Worth, where she was listed in good condition.

The accident occurred about 4 p.m. when a trailer, made from the bed of a pickup, broke loose from a Jeep Wagoneer at the top of a hill on Park Row Drive, accident investigator Dan Whittington said.

The trailer hitch popped off the Jeep, and a single safety chain being used to secure it broke loose, he said.

The eastbound trailer, loaded with about 700 pounds of car parts, rolled down the hill, crossed the median and hit a westbound Ford Aerostar on the left side of the front bumper, he said. The trailer bounced over the bumper, rolled onto the hood of the van and into the windshield, he said. The impact knocked the van back across the two lanes and into a nearby front yard.

Logan Haghighi, who was driving the Jeep, said he heard "trailer noises" shortly after turning onto Park Row Drive near the top of the hill.

"I was coming down the hill and I felt the trailer hitting the back of the truck, so I slammed on my brakes," he said. "The trailer started moving side to side and broke the chain."

Haghighi said he tried to use the Jeep to stop the trailer but was unsuccessful.

Finley was in one of the back seats of the van when the accident happened, she said.

"We were just driving and the trailer came through the windshield and my sister started screaming, `I can't feel my legs,' " she said.

"We saw the trailer coming and swerved, but it swerved with us."

Finley said she pulled her 2-year-old niece and an 8-year-old family friend from the van and tried to get help for her sister, who was trapped behind the steering wheel.

After the accident, Finley stood in the yard with her arms crossed, watching firefighters use hydraulic cutters to free her sister from the van.

Caption:
PHOTO(S): Bruce Maxwell

Copyright 1998 Star-Telegram, Inc.
Record Number: 525798

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