WICHITA FALLS, TX (05/28/2014) — 70-year-old Roberta Gidney was killed Wednesday afternoon after an 18-wheeler struck her vehicle from behind.
According to Wichita Falls police, an 18-wheeler truck caused the 3-vehicle car accident after slamming into the rear of Mrs. Roberta Gidney’s car on the Lloyd Ruby Overpass (Highway 287). Roberta Gidney, of Vernon, was stopped behind her husband’s broken down Chevy S-10 pickup truck in the center lane of northbound Highway 287. She had just arrived to assist her husband at about 3:20 p.m. and had activated her hazard lights when her car was hit from behind by a semi-trailer. The collision then pushed Roberta Gidney’s Cavalier into her husband’s pickup.
Gidney’s husband was able to avoid injury by jumping out of the way, but unfortunately Mrs. Gidney was fatally injured. Mrs. Gidney’s dog was also in the vehicle but there is no word on its condition.
I have to wonder how a driver with a CDL misses a stopped vehicle on the road. Drivers must always leave enough room ahead of them to stop in an emergency and commercial truck drivers know this better than most. Was distracted driving to blame? Was the trucker driving beyond his daily hours-of-service limit? Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait for the results of an investigation to get any answers. Our thoughts go out to the Gidney family.
