Blog - Greenville

How to Stay Safe When Riding Motorcycles

January 29, 2016 By Avon Alexander

Thousands of people love riding motorcycles stating that there is nothing better than riding in the open air on two wheels. But however enjoyable and romantic motorcycle riding is, it is undeniably one of the more dangerous ways to travel. The lack of protection for the rider and passenger means that most accidents result in fatalities or serious injuries. In fact, according to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration, motorcyclists are 35 times more likely to die in a traffic accident than those in cars and trucks.

So how can you ensure you are safe on a motorcycle?

First, only get onto a motorcycle when you are in the right frame of mind. Those who ride when they are feeling angry or depressed may not make sensible decisions, and with motorcycles there is little room for error. In addition, do not drive too fast as around a third of the accidents which result in fatalities is due to the motorcyclist exceeding the speed limit. Driving around a curve at speed can often lead to a bike leaving the roadway and the driver being seriously injured or killed.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: Greenville driver safety

Deadly Crash in Union County

December 29, 2015 By Avon Alexander
On Monday, November 30, there was a deadly crash in Union County.

According to authorities, the crash happened at around 2.20 p.m. on Highway 56 at Green Leaf Drive about five miles west of Clinton. A 2001 Chevy Blazer traveling east on SC 52 being driven by 30 year old Rhonda M. Bellew, of Union went over the right side of the road, over corrected and crossed back over the highway and went down an embankment and hit a tree.

Her front seat passenger was 34 year old Leroy Dean Davis of Jones Ford Road in Union and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Bellew was injured and taken to Spartanburg Medical Center.

Neither driver nor passenger was wearing a seat belt.

The Coroner’s Office and Highway Patrol are investigating and so far it is not known why Bellew left the roadway.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: greenville serious accident

Driving In Wet Weather

November 28, 2015 By Avon Alexander
Driving in wet weather can be difficult and far more stressful than driving when it is not raining.

It is important to follow several safety measures to avoid the risk of an accident, the most important of which is to slow down as visibility will be more limited and it also takes longer to brake.

If you are on a highway stay in the middle lane as the water is often deeper in the outside lanes and make sure you are well back from the vehicle in front. This will give you a longer stopping distance and improve visibility as there will be less spray on your windshield. You should pay extra attention to trucks and buses as they produce far more spray and only pass them if you really must.

Given that the visibility is worse keep a careful eye out for brake lights ahead of you and try not to brake too hard. You need to be more alert when driving if it is wet especially if the rain is very heavy.

Ensure your windshield demister is on as it is much easier for the windshield to mist over when it is raining outside.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: Greenville driver safety

Woman Fell to her Death Helping Crash Victim

October 29, 2015 By Avon Alexander
On Saturday, September 26, a young woman fell to her death trying to help a crash victim.

According to the South Carolina Highway, 34 year old David Leroy Bergen was driving a pickup truck which did not belong to him at around 1.30 a.m. He crashed the vehicle on the interstate 385 and having exited the vehicle he fell off the side of the road and landed on Highway 276 near Old Stage Road. Other motorists stopped to help when they saw the crash and 29 year old Jessica Smith, who was a nurse, heard Bergen screaming from the road below. It appears that she did not know how far below the road was and she went over and fell around 20 feet to her death.

Bergen was taken to hospital with serious injuries and has now been charged with several driving violations including DUI, driving under suspension, driving a vehicle without the owner’s consent and failure to pay child support.

Jessica was not only a certified nursing assistant from Greer she was also the mother of a nine year old son and was buried in Fountain Inn on October 7.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: greenville serious accident

Law May Change on Rear Facing Child Seats

September 29, 2015 By Avon Alexander
In South Carolina, the law states that rear facing child seats are mandatory until the child reaches the age of one.

Now the lawmakers are discussing whether to change the law to two years old. According to the authorities almost three quarters of parents do not use child seats correctly and one mistake which is often made is changing to the next type of seat too early, leading to safety issues for the child. Parents often simply use the child’s age as a guideline for when to change the type of seat when in actual fact what is more relevant is the height and weight of the child.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics the child should not change seat type until they have reached the maximum weight and height allowable and only then should the child be moved up to the next model.

Other common mistakes parents make are placing the chest clips incorrectly, when they should be at the level of the child’s armpit and the seat should not be able to be moved more than an inch. Pacifier clips and toys should not be attached to the seat as they could be dangerous in the event of an accident and in the winter any large coat should be placed above the child like a blanket rather than them wearing it, as that can cause the straps to be too loose.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: Passenger safety

Young Woman was Killed in Hit and Run

August 22, 2015 By Avon Alexander
On Sunday, August 9 a young woman was killed in a hit and run and her boyfriend is now facing charges.

According to Wilson police, the accident happened at 3 a.m. at the 2600 block of Airport Boulevard. Following a 911 call by witnesses, police arrived at the scene to find 25 year old Ashley Marie Wassilchalk lying in the roadway near the curb with a serious head injury. She was taken to Vidant Medical Center but she died later the same day. She was a mother to two sons, aged two and four.

The police investigation determined that she had been hit by a vehicle and they arrested her 27 year old boyfriend, Brian Keonte Knight although it is not known what evidence linked him to the crime.

Knight is of Halifax and has been charged with felony death by motor vehicle, involuntary manslaughter and DWI. He has been released on bond.

The investigation by the police department’s STEP Unit and criminal investigation division is still ongoing.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: greenville serious accident

Landrum Man Killed in a Motorcycle Accident

July 31, 2015 By Avon Alexander
On Thursday morning, July 2, a man from Landrum was killed in a motorcycle accident.

According to the Greenville County Coroner’s Office the accident happened early in the morning at around 5.45 a.m. when Edward Lee Campbell, aged 42, was riding his Kawasaki motorcycle on Belue Mill Road. When he reached the 700 block of Belue Mill Road, and just a few blocks from his home on the very same road, he lost control of his Kawasaki motorcycle.

When Campbell lost control, for reasons as yet unknown, he was thrown from the bike. He was not wearing a helmet and, according to the coroner, died from injuries to his head. However an autopsy was scheduled for later in the week to determine the exact cause of death.

The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating the crash to ascertain why Campbell lost control of the bike.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: greenville serious accident

Man and Woman Killed by a Train

June 30, 2015 By Avon Alexander
On Tuesday, June 16, a man and a woman were killed by a train when it hit their car.

According to the Highway Patrol, the accident happened on Stephenson Street near Freeman Drive which is about a mile south of Greer. Reginald Mitchel II, who was 23 years old was driving a four door Chevrolet Impala with 61 year old Carolyn Latrell Miller in the passenger seat. It was around 10.30 p.m. when he ignored signs and warnings of a Norfolk Southern train traveling northbound and the car collided with the train.

Both were declared dead at the scene and according to the Coroner, the reason for death was blunt force trauma injuries. He ruled the deaths an accident.

This was the second fatal train accident in Greenville County is less than three weeks as a teenager was hit and killed by a train on May 29 on Loop Street when walking, That was also ruled an accident.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: greenville serious accident

Ware Shoals Man Dies in Motorcycle Accident

May 28, 2015 By Avon Alexander
On Thursday, May 14, a man from Ware Shoals died in a motorcycle accident.

According to the South Carolina Highway Patrol, the accident happened just after 6.30 a.m. on Thursday morning in Laurens County on State 101.

Jamal Amador Cloud, aged 43, of Dairy Street, was riding to his work at BMW in Greer on his 1999 Suzuki motorcycle when he collided with a Honda sedan on State 101 near Postell Hughes Drive. Cloud was thrown from the motorcycle and although he was wearing a helmet, he was pronounced dead at the scene of multiple blunt force trauma.

The driver of the car was not injured.

The accident is currently under investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol and the coroner. It is not yet known whether any charges will be brought.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car or motorcycle accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: greenville serious accident

Car Seat Inspection for Children

April 30, 2015 By Avon Alexander
There will be a car seat inspection day on Tuesday, May 5, 2015 at the Belmont Fire Department run by Fox Carolina, Safe Kids Upstate and Belmont Fire Department to help keep children safe while traveling in cars.

The idea is the ensure that parents are aware of the type of car seat their children should be using and also to check that they are installed properly and free checks will be offered.

Those children who are either unrestrained or not in the right type of car seat, or in one which has not been fitted properly have a much greater risk of being killed or seriously injured in an accident. In fact, according to Safe Kids Worldwide, of those children who died in car accidents in the U.S. in 2011, around a third were unrestrained.

When the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control’s Division of Injury and Violence Prevention carried out an audit at some elementary schools in South Caroline they found a third of children were not restrained at all and just under half of the children were not properly restrained.

If you, or someone you know, have been injured in a serious car accident in South Carolina, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Please contact us today at (864) 280-7660 or contact us online, so we can schedule your free initial consultation and get you the financial compensation you deserve.

Filed Under: Greenville driver safety