Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

March 17, 2023

News: 3 drivers injured in multi-vehicle accident on West Highway 40 in Ocala

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

OCALA, FL – Three people were injured in a multi-vehicle accident in Ocala early Wednesday morning, Ocala Fire Rescue said.

The rescue squad released a Facebook post with details of the incident that occurred at the 5500 block of West Highway 40.

Ocala Fire Rescue’s Engine 4, Rescue 1, Squad 7, Battalion Chief 11, and a Safety Officer were dispatched to the scene at about 6:12 a.m. They arrived to find three pickup trucks blocking several lanes of traffic – a GNC Sierra that rolled over and was upright, a Ford F-150 with heavy front end damage, and a modified Ford Ranger with a black cab that sustained heavy front and rear damage.

March 16, 2023

News: Crash injures 2, blocks lanes on US 441 in Alachua County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

PAYNES PRAIRIE, FL – A car wreck left two people injured and slowed traffic in a portion of Alachua County on Tuesday, WCJB reported.

The Florida Highway Patrol said at least two vehicles were involved in the accident on U.S. Highway 441 near Southwest 104th Avenue in Paynes Prairie. There were no immediate details on the severity of the injuries.

State troopers shut down the northbound lanes on U.S. Highway 411 while the scene was being cleared, and detoured traffic away from the area until the lanes reopened.

March 15, 2023

News: Man pleads guilty in fatal car crash at Pinellas County home

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL – A man pleaded guilty last week in connection with a fatal crash in Pinellas County on Sept. 3, 2021, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

44-year-old Vaughn W. Mongan was arrested one month after the accident, which happened as he was driving a friend’s Tesla at about 10:15 p.m. Authorities said he accelerated on Manning Road, went through a stop sign, and drove off an embankment before crashing through a fence and plowing into a home on Caird Way in Palm Harbor.

One of the passengers, the owner of the Tesla, was killed in the crash while the three other passengers were seriously injured. A 69-year-old woman in the home and her dog also were killed. An investigation indicated that Mongan was driving at over 100 miles per hour prior to the wreck in a 30 mile per hour zone. Prosecutors said he was not intoxicated at the time.

March 14, 2023

News: Collision involving pickup, semi snarls traffic on I-75 in Ocala

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

OCALA, FL – A collision on Interstate 75 in Marion County Monday morning slowed traffic for rush-hour commuters, WCJB reports.

The crash occurred on I-75 near mile marker 352 at about 6:45 a.m. It involved a Ford pickup truck and a semi-truck, and caused one person to be hospitalized with undisclosed injuries.

The wreck shut down all northbound lanes of I-75, resulting in major backups before the interstate reopened about three hours later.

March 13, 2023

News: Driver turning into Pasco County parking lot fatally strikes pedestrian

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

PASCO COUNTY, FL – A pedestrian was killed in an accident in a store parking lot in Pasco County, reports the Tampa Bay Times.

The Florida Highway Patrol released details of the incident that occurred Feb. 28 at a CVS store in the area of Moog Road near U.S. 19. According to the FHP, the driver of a GMC pickup truck was headed east on Moog Road at about 10:35 a.m. when another motorist leaving a nearby parking lot made a turn in front of her.

When the pickup driver steered north to avoid a collision, she turned into the CVS driveway and struck a 70-year-old woman before hitting a pole. The pedestrian, a Holiday resident, was pronounced dead at an area hospital.

March 10, 2023

News: Pickup truck driver killed in rear-end collision in Marion County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

MARION COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said a pickup truck driver died following a collision in Marion County Tuesday night, reports WKMG.

The FHP’s crash report said the incident occurred on NE 203rd Avenue Road near County Road 316 at about 9 p.m. An investigation found that the pickup driver was traveling on NE 203rd Avenue Road when he failed to stop and struck the back of another vehicle.

The pickup driver, a 61-year-old Fort McCoy man, was pronounced dead after being taken to a local hospital. No other injuries were reported.

March 9, 2023

News: Driver crashes into building in Gainesville, injuring woman in lobby

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

GAINESVILLE, FL – Police said an elderly driver crashed their vehicle into a building in Gainesville on Monday afternoon.

WGFL reports the incident happened at Tire Outlet at 1320 North Main Street at about 2 p.m. Police said their investigation found that the driver had arrived for service at the business when his foot slid off the brake and the vehicle went into the building’s glass lobby.

A woman who was waiting in the lobby suffered cuts from the shattered glass as well as a neck injury, but her injuries were not said to be life-threatening. The driver of the vehicle was not injured.

March 8, 2023

News: Elderly driver dies in collision at State Road 35 intersection

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

MARION COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said a collision at an intersection in Marion County Monday afternoon left an elderly woman dead, WKMG reports.

Two vehicles collided in the area of State Road 35 and Southeast 92nd Loop shortly after 1 p.m. The FHP determined that the driver of an SUV was going at high speed while headed west on Southeast 92nd Loop and went through the red light at the intersection. The SUV crashed into the side of a sedan that had a green light and was going south. The driver of the sedan, an 81-year-old woman from Summerfield, died at the scene.

The driver of the SUV, a 37-year-old Fruitland Park man, was hospitalized with minor injuries.

March 7, 2023

News: Scooter rider dead after colliding with van in Pasco County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

PASCO COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said a crash in Pasco County involving a wrong-way driver claimed the life of a scooter rider, reports WFLA.

The accident happened Thursday evening near the intersection of Pretty Pond Road and Chenken Road.

According to the FHP’s investigation, the driver of a van was going east in the westbound lanes of Pretty Pond Road and crashed nearly head-on into a motorized scooter headed east.

March 6, 2023

News: Driver killed when pickup slams into fence, trees in Marion County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

MARION COUNTY, FL – The driver of a pickup truck was killed when his vehicle crashed in Marion County early Wednesday morning.

According to WGFL, the victim was a 27-year-old man who was driving a Dodge pickup west on Southeast 175th Street when the accident occurred at about 12:00 a.m.

The Florida Highway Patrol said the man was driving at a high rate of speed and drove off the road onto the south shoulder. The Dodge crashed into a fence and struck multiple trees.