In Memory of Matthew J. Burnett (December 21, 2020)

A 2019 Honda Accord was traveling south in the left northbound lane of the interstate. It then hit a 2019 Freightliner tractor-trailer head-on.

The driver of the Honda who died at the scene was 39-year-old Matthew J. Burnett of Hancock, Maryland. He was wearing a seat belt.

The driver of the tractor trailer was 44-year-old Robert P. Wilson of Louisville, Kentucky. He was transported for treatment of minor injuries. One person dead after hitting tractor-trailer head-on

Because the bottom of a truck is higher than the bumper of passenger vehicles, when there is a collision the smaller vehicle easily slides under the truck and the first point of impact is the windshield. Seatbelts, airbags, and car crumple zones do not function as intended in underride crashes —frontside, and rear — leaving passenger vehicle occupants vulnerable to life-threatening injuries.

Matthew Burnett, Precious One Gone Too Soon

See Underride Crash Memorials posted here and at #STOPunderrides Tweets. To add photos or more information on this story or to add other underride crashes to be remembered, send an email to underridemap@gmail.com. Please use this Interactive Underride Crash Map Crash Location Input Form to provide us with accurate information . (Note: the map is currently not online; but we would keep the information for future updating and to aid in underride advocacy efforts.)

Support improving Underride Protection on trailers: Contact your legislators with this User-Friendly TAKE ACTION online tool.

How You Can Help

Please sign this petition: Congress, Act Now To End Deadly Truck Underrides.

Note: In order to raise awareness and preserve the memories of underride victims — precious ones gone too soon — I have been writing memorial posts on what appear to me to be underride crashes. I am not a crash reconstructionist, and I do not have all the facts on these crashes; but underride should be investigated as a potential factor in truck crash injuries and deaths.

Matthew James Burnett
This is my dear cousin (submitted by Heather
)

3 thoughts on “In Memory of Matthew J. Burnett (December 21, 2020)

  1. You are so very missed and the universe is different without you in my life, Matt. 🌻🖤

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