Truck Crash Injures Four

Date: April 5, 2010
Location: I-5 near Eugene, Oregon
Names: Allison Burton, Daniel Kyte, Tammy Kyte, [two children]

Four members of a British Columbia family were seriously injured April 5, 2010, in a truck crash that one of the drivers says was caused by strong winds, though Oregon State Police have not accepted the driver’s statement as truth and are still investigating, according to KVAL.com and an Oregon State Police press release.

The accident happened on I-5 about five miles north of Eugene, Oregon, around 10 PM, when a large Budget rental truck carrying three people from California crossed the grass center median and crashed into a pickup truck pulling a ski boat.

The driver of the pickup truck, Daniel Kyte, 37, of Abbotsford, B.C.; his wife, Tammy; and their two children were injured. Tammy Kyte was trapped inside the truck and firefighters had to remove the roof of the truck to get her out. All four were taken to Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend.

OSP troopers said the rental truck’s driver, Allison Burton, 73, of California, and two unnamed passengers, did not appear to be injured.

Burton told police that a gust of wind blew his truck over the median. Police are continuing to investigate the cause of the crash.

We send our sincerest wishes to all the members of the Kyte family and hope that they will recover soon, and completely, especially the children. We also send our thoughts to Burton and his passengers, hoping they are well.

The moments and days after a crash are the most important. First, you must seek medical attention as soon as possible. Second, somebody should collect evidence from the accident scene. Evidence can disappear quickly, so doing this while your loved one is in the hospital is of extreme importance. We understand that you may not be able to do this while you or your loved one is in the hospital, so you may want to ask an attorney to do it for you. This is also better, because if your case goes to court, the evidence gathered by you or a family friend can appear biased.

The months after an accident are important as well. There are time limits to filing a claim if you have been in an accident. And sometimes you can’t go back to work, so you start to worry about paying medical bills and wage loss. How will you take care of your family?

These are all stressful things, and it doesn’t help that the insurance company won’t leave you alone, but they won’t help you either. So please, do not hesitate to contact a qualified Oregon injury attorney or request a free copy of our book, 7 Common Mistakes That Can Wreck Your Oregon Accident Case. Our website has helpful advice, and what we don’t cover there, we will be more than happy to answer ourselves.