According to the accident report, a tractor-trailer had been traveling eastbound down I-291. A 2015 Toyota was traveling the wrong way down that same road, in the same lane as the tractor-trailer. The Toyota struck the trailer head-on. . .
In the Toyota, the female driver was found by police, who said she had serious injuries. She was later pronounced dead on the scene. The victim was identified by officers as Samantha Jo Smith, 31, from Windsor Locks. Woman dies in wrong-way crash on I-291 in Manchester
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 —front, side, and rear — leaving passenger vehicle occupants vulnerable to life-threatening injuries.
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.
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 could potentially 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.
We are asking that people send us crash reports for collisions with trucks which they suspect involved underride. Send them to marianne@annaleahmary.com. We will submit these as complaints to USDOT. Read more here: Launching a Campaign To Flood NHTSA With Underride Complaint Reports
It’s a shame that this happened but her truck was higher than a standard car front end. Her vehicle tore off the cab from the chassis on the tractor. Fully understand a car hitting the windshield but not normal for a pickup truck.
Actually, the geometric mismatch between the bottom of a large truck and most any passenger vehicle bumper is what is responsible for underride — even with large SUVs and pick-up trucks. Measure them yourself or look up the measurement online. Passenger vehicle occupants are vulnerable to deadly underride and Passenger Compartment Intrusion (PCI) because of this mismatch which allows the passenger vehicle to slide under without triggering crumple zones, airbags, and seatbelt tensioners.
Check these links for more information about underride and Front Underride Protection in particular: https://youtu.be/0XlS7y06blE?t=6997 [from this post – https://annaleahmary.com/2021/03/engineers-trucking-industry-victim-advocates-collaborate-at-side-guard-task-force/ ]
https://annaleahmary.com/2018/11/major-truck-manufacturers-have-front-underride-protection-designs-which-can-work-on-american-trucks/
https://www.safertrucking.org/news-blog/guest-post-iihs-research-provides-foundation-for-traffic-safety-legislation-including-underride