Yesterday, there was a horrific car wreck on Texas 130 in Caldwell County that killed 4 adults and left 5 more children injured.
The wreck hits home as it occurred near the Texas 130/Schuelke Road intersection, and yes, Schuelke Road does refer to my family.
The investigation is just beginning, but one suggestion is that the driver lost control after the vehicle lost the tread on one of the tires. The theory is that the tire became so hot from driving at the toll road speeds (the speed limit is 85 miles per hour) that the tread separated.
It wouldn’t be the first time such a wreck occurred on 130. I travel it fairly frequently back and forth between Austin and Lockhart, and there are often the remnants of tire thrown across the highway. There is also a report that a tire blow out led to a fatal crash along 130 near Manor back in April.
The lesson to learn is that you need to check your tires. Speed limits are now higher than they’ve historically been, and you should take time to make sure the condition of your tires can handle the driving conditions you’ll be encountering.
I’m also intrigued by these types of wrecks because they bring novel legal theories. For example, the injured or killed would obviously have a claim against the driver who lost control. But they may also have a products liability claim against the tire manufacturer or a claim against the manufacturer of the vehicle that the vehicle wasn’t designed well enough to sustain the forces in the rollover collision (these are called crashworthiness cases). These types of cases, with novel and not always obvious claims, are the ones where hiring the right lawyer can really make a difference in the type of recovery ultimately obtained.
