Monthly Archives: May 2018

Hearing to Consider Heidi King to Head Natl Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Truck Safety, , ,

Lois and I met with Heidi King in March to discuss the underride problem. We are looking forward to the upcoming hearing which could put her in a key leadership role — enabling her to appropriately address underride.

May 16, 2018

Nominations Hearing

U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a hearing at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 16, 2018, to consider three presidential nominees.

Completed nomination questionnaires are available at www.commerce.senate.gov/nominations

Witnesses:

  • Mr. Joseph Gruters, of Florida, to be a Director of the Amtrak Board of Directors
  • Ms. Jennifer Homendy, of Virginia, to be a Member of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
  • Ms. Heidi King, of California, to be Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

*Witness list subject to change.

Hearing Details:

Wednesday, May 16, 2018
10:00 a.m.
Full Committee

This hearing will take place in Russell Senate Office Building, Room 253. Witness testimony, opening statements, and a live video of the hearing will be available on www.commerce.senate.gov.

AnnaLeah Karth: Precious one gone too soon; we remember you on your birth day.

AnnaLeah and Mary

AnnaLeah Karth: Precious one gone too soon; we remember you on your birth day, when we welcomed you into this world. May 15, 1995 – May 4, 2013 

(After putting together this list of videos which capture memories of our birthday girl, I realize again how intertwined AnnaLeah’s and Mary’s lives were. The youngest two sisters of nine siblings.)

AnnaLeah Photo Memorial Slideshow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-dUs0gKAT0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BIpdLAPxb4

It is well with my soul https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMPmNsvL33Q

Particularly poignant photos of AnnaLeah, Mary, & another young girl, Bethany, having water balloon fun on July 30, 2007. What makes it heart-wrenching is that, within 6 short years, they would all lose their lives in crashes. See more of their stories here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2mDYj-SS1o

Camp Concordia 2007 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfG33KjoUnY

Moments (30 seconds) with AnnaLeah and Mary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyYIWaipo7w

A Day at the Beach with AnnaLeah & Mary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPHoPQugCvk

AnnaLeah & Mary; A Short Film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mP-bueIJ7A

An Afternoon at the Duck Pond https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdMMg6o4XiQ

Simply AnnaLeah https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YU_SE1fGia8

Farewell to AnnaLeah & Mary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpKdHfc_xFY

AnnaLeah Visits Historical Durham AnnaLeah and her dad shared historical interests. Jerry took her to Durham in the Spring of 2013 to see historical sites. AnnaLeah borrowed Mary’s camera to capture the memories. Background music by her Grandpa Waldron on his dulcimer.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8SMzNrsDj4

AnnaLeah’s Confirmation AnnaLeah thoughtfully shares a few words from her heart…about her faith.

See the statement which AnnaLeah wrote when she was 13:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY393AmtB8E

AnnaLeah’s First Year: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwPSDNWIodU

AnnaLeah Trims the Blinds While Mary Plays https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwnmGzFzmEI

My Favorite Present https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDiBDZIj2mM

With Hope, We Carry On https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp7acA3CI34

National Sheriffs’ Association Urges Congress To Enact The “Vital & Pivotal” STOP Underrides! Bill

Truck Safety, ,
We were excited to receive a Letter of Support for the STOP Underrides! Bill this week from the National Sheriffs’ Association and their Traffic Safety Committee. It was encouraging to know that they “get it” and are supporting our efforts to end preventable underride tragedies.
The NSA STOP Underrides Letter of Support to Congress closes with these thoughts:

. . . these substandard designs can be retrofitted and adapted with the proper side guards and rear guards that will provide passenger vehicle protection. These pivotal changes are in the hands of Congress to enact solutions that are mandatory for compliant commercial vehicles. The STOP Underrides Act of 2017, in both the House and the Senate, is an important piece of legislation that works to correct this “geometric mismatch” to better protect roadway drivers and traffic safety.

The National Sheriffs’ Association Traffic Safety Committee believes that this bill is vital to the efforts to prevent these crashes from occurring, first and foremost and also to lower roadway deaths, injuries, and property damage. We applaud the efforts of Senators Gillibrand and Rubio, as well as Congressman Cohen and DeSaulnier as they work to combat and improve safety on our nation’s roadways.

This request is deeply personal to all of us and will protect our constituents on our roadways, protect our law enforcement officers and first responders, and lower deaths and injuries.

Thank you for your consideration of our request.

Sincerely,

Sheriff Harold Eavenson, Rockwall County, TX, President, National Sheriffs’ Association

Sheriff John Whetsel (Ret.), Oklahoma County, OK, Chair, Traffic Safety Committe

Lois Durso and I will be back in DC next week to attend the May 16 nomination hearing for NHTSA Administrator nominee Heidi King (currently serving as the NHTSA Deputy Administrator). We welcome opportunities to sit down and share our stories and knowledge of this preventable problem. And we are hopeful that there will be significant action to move this life-preserving legislation forward posthaste.

 

“It doesn’t take much force at all to turn an otherwise minor accident into a deadly one.” #truckunderride

Truck Safety, , ,

“It doesn’t take much force at all to turn an otherwise minor accident into a deadly one.” Insightful coverage of the truck underride problem by a reporter in Dallas/Fort Worth who contacted and interviewed Rebekah Karth Chojnacki today. Well done, Rebekah.

“AnnaLeah died instantly. Mary had a stroke and died several days later at a Children’s Hospital in Georgia,” said their sister, Rebekah Chojnacki.

The family soon learned that tractor trailers in the United States are required to have a rear guard to prevent so called ‘underride’ crashes where passenger vehicles slip underneath larger trucks. In many cases, though, like in the Karths’ collision, they fail.

“We don’t want to just say this a tragedy and there’s nothing we can do about it. There are solutions, and we want to help be the solution,” said Chojnacki. . . 

Frustrated by the lack of progress, the Karth family helped write legislation that would require these improved standards for rear guards and, for the first time, mandate side impact guards. . .

Karth knows, though, the fight is not over yet. “Until we get enough support to get this bill passed, people will continue to die,” she said.

Family Trying To Change Law, Save Lives 5 Years After Deadly Big Rig Crash

Thank you, Andrea Lucia & CBS DFW.

Rebekah & Susanna Karth were also interviewed by a DFW station shortly after the crash: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbKhY0gXQqY We are thankful that this issue is getting needed attention and have high hopes that this will come to a vote soon to mandate an end to these needless, preventable tragedies.

With the help of He who watches over us. . . may this be done swiftly for the preserving of many lives.

Congress, Act Now To End Deadly Truck Underride!

Underride in the News

Truck Safety

I have been on a trip overseas with my son Levi and his fiancee in Paraguay where they will soon be missionaries. I, of course, couldn’t stop myself from taking photos of trucks on the road as we drove from city to city.

I didn’t have much connectivity while I was gone for the past week and so am just catching up on the recent news articles and broadcasts on underride: