Greenwood Village Personal Injury Law Blog

Colorado is known for all things winter. In fact, the draw of winter sports like skiing or snowboarding is a major part of the state's tourism industry. Unfortunately, spending winter in Colorado means having to take the good with the bad. That includes winter weather and its effects on travel safety. The good news is there are plenty of ways that savvy drivers can stay safe on the roads even in the worst conditions.

The best way to prevent a vehicle accident due to winter weather is to avoid the snow entirely. If possible, drivers shouldn't travel during the worst of a storm. In some cases, it will be possible to delay a trip until the conditions are better.

Truck accidents have a greater impact on crash victims due to the size of the vehicle, so driving around them can be intimidating.

Crash statistics from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) indicate that large trucks caused 104,000 crashes that led to injuries and nearly 4,000 fatal accidents.  These crashes are most likely to occur in rural areas and on interstate highways, and they often happen between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Patients in Colorado may be worried about their own future operations after learning about a case when a woman lost her healthy kidney because a surgeon mistook it for a cancerous tumor. During what was scheduled to be a routine back surgery in April 2016, the 51-year-old woman checked into a local hospital. She was seeking a fusion of bones in her lower back after she had been injured in a car accident. However, when she went into surgery, the physician performing the operation identified her kidney and proclaimed it to be a tumor, declaring the situation an emergency and removing it immediately.

The situation came to light after a medical malpractice lawsuit filed by the patient was settled. In fact, the man who removed her kidney was only scheduled to perform the initial incision; specialist surgeons were to perform her procedure. However, the surgeon who wrongly removed the woman's kidney and who faces charges from the Florida Health Department as a result is serving as the chair of surgery at another hospital. The physician has privileges at several hospitals, but he could be at risk of a fine or other discipline as a result of the case. He had a record free of previous disciplinary actions prior to this incident.

Some Colorado residents might have heard about the collapse of an apartment floor in South Carolina that resulted in dozens of injuries. The accident happened just after midnight on October 21.

A clubhouse at an apartment complex near Clemson University had been rented for a private function. According to witnesses, people were dancing to a popular song when the floor gave way, and many of them fell into the basement below. Some people used their cell phones to capture video of the action and post it on social media. One witness said there was a loud "boom!" as the floor collapsed while another said people were trying to climb back out and that she had blood on her shoe. A witness who attempted to help some of the injured people said he thought some people had broken their legs or ankles. Police said that although 30 people were taken to the hospitals, no one seemed to have suffered a life-threatening injury.