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Safety improvements to Lehigh Acres roads and a recent settlement against the City of Cape Coral highlight the risks of dangerous road conditions in Southwest Florida.

NBC News reports Lehigh Acres is eliminating several dangerous traffic turns after a series of traffic collisions. streetsigns-300x200

There have been nearly 20 reported collisions in the last two years because of left-hand turns at Fifth Street West and Gunnery Road. Cars from every direction turn left around traffic coming off of the main traffic light on Lee Boulevard. On Thursday, work crews will extend an already-existing median so that no one can turn left at Fifth Street West.

Residents are happy crews are improving the crash-prone spot because of how close it is to Lehigh Senior High, Varsity Lakes Middle School and Tortuga Elementary School. The much-needed safety improvement cost the county just $5,000 and will be completed by the end of the month.

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A four-vehicle crash closed Southbound Interstate 75 in North Fort Myers this week, after a semi, a camper trailer and several vehicles were involved in a collision.highway-300x225

FOX4 News reported the incident closed the highway at  mile marker 147, which is near the Tucker’s Grade and Bayshore exits. The Florida Highway Patrol reported a speeding car could not avoid hitting the rear-end of a tanker truck. The car went out of control and spun into the path of a tractor trailer, which veered into the path of a pickup truck towing a camper. Traffic on I-75 was diverted onto Tucker’s Grade while authorities cleaned up the mess.

The 34-year-old driver was uninjured. He was charged with careless driving and failure to provide insurance at the scene of a crash. Several other motorists involved in the incident were transported to Lee Memorial Hospital.

A car rammed into Fins Seafood & Dive Bar in Cape Coral over the weekend, stunning inside guests and killing the driver.

Guests were startled but unhurt after the vehicle smashed into an outside wall along the restaurant’s seating area. Authorities believe the 50-year-old driver may have suffered a medical emergency. She was transported to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead according to The News-Press. 

storefront crashes

The incident occurred about 5:30 p.m. Friday, when a 2001 Nissan Xterra SUV, continued north along the center median where it collided with a bush and several trees, veered left and entered the southbound lanes of Del Prado, crossed all three southbound lanes and hit the curb in front of Fins Seafood & Dive Bar at 3422 Del Prado, according to the Cape Coral police report.

Our property injury lawyers in Fort Myers and throughout Southwest Florida know area residents are at high risk of such incidents for a number of reasons.

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New research suggests parents should leave their children in rear-facing car seats until they have outgrown them.

While it’s unclear when Florida will update its own recommendations, parents and caregivers should start using the new guidelines as soon as possible. USA Today reports the new car-seat guidelines for rear-facing seats are designed to save lives. Safety advocates now say children should use the seats until they reach the height and weight limit suggested by the manufacturer. Newer, stronger seats are allowing parents to use them for larger children.

Previous guidelines suggest use of rear-facing car seats until a child reached the age of 2.carseat-218x300

“Fortunately, car seat manufacturers have created seats that allow children to remain rear-facing until they weigh 40 pounds or more, which means most children can remain rear-facing past their second birthday,” said Dr. Benjamin Hoffman, lead author of the policy statement and chair of the AAP Council on Injury, Violence and Poison Prevention. “It’s best to keep your child rear-facing as long as possible. This is still the safest way for children to ride.”
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Two construction workers were killed last week in a Florida scaffolding accident after their scaffold collapsed at a JW Marriott Hotel in Orange County.scaffolding-accident-300x199

Four workers were on the scaffolding when it collapsed at the site on Chelonia Parkway near Disney in Bonnet Creek. Two workers fell while another held on and the other worker was able to climb to safety, according to a report in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Officials say workers were pouring concrete when the accident happened at the resort hotel, which is under construction.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will investigate the incident.

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Any focus on back-to-school safety would be incomplete without addressing the biggest risk on the road: Teen drivers.car accident attorney

We’ve recently address school bus accidents and bicyclist and pedestrian safety as students return to class throughout Collier, Lee and Charlotte counties. But it is our teen drivers who face the highest risks of being involved in a serious or fatal traffic collision.

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As we reported recently on our Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, school bus accidents are a common risk as the school year begins each year.pedestrian accident

Our experienced pedestrian accident lawyers in Cape Coral and Fort Myers also continue to see an increase in the number of serious and fatal injuries to pedestrians and bicyclists each autumn. The start of the school year, early darkness with the end of Daylight Savings Time, and the start of winter tourist season all contribute to the outsized risk of pedestrian and bicycle accidents in Southwest Florida.

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A serious bus accident in Lehigh Acres is a reminder of the road risks as a new school year begins in Southwest Florida.school bus

NBC 2 reported a bus collided with a passenger vehicle, shoving it partway beneath another school bus. Pictures show the impact of the collision. The accident occurred near Lee and Leonard boulevards in Lehigh Acres. The vehicle driver was reportedly uninjured. Three students on the Dunbar High School buses were evaluated for possible injuries. Such collisions can be far more serious. At the end of last school year, a motorist was killed in an accident with a Lee County school bus.

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Economic recovery has brought record-low unemployment throughout Southwest Florida. But hospitality, service and construction trades have seen increased work accident risks.

NBC 2 reports a 58-year-old man was killed when a crane truck backed into him as we was loading boxes onto a forklift. The accident happened in a North Fort Myers parking lot along Tamiami Trail. The Naples Daily News reports a Bonita Springs construction accident claimed the life of a man working on a concrete wall. We reported recently on our Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, a fatal Fort Myer roofing accident and a Naples elevator accident that claimed the lives of two construction workers. construction injury

Factors in determining sources of economic recovery following a serious or fatal work accident, include whether an employee was an employee or independent contractor,  and whether an at-fault party or other third party (other than victim’s employer) was wholly or partially liable.

A recent series of accidents on the water is a reminder of the risks of boating accidents in Southwest Florida.

NBC reported a woman was rescued by beach workers after a boating accident. The 29-year-old woman was taken to Lee Memorial Hospital, where she spent weeks in the hospital recovering. Her leg hit the propeller of a rented pontoon boat near Matanzas Pass Bridge, according to media reports.  Two nearby Fort Myers Beach workers pulled her from the water and applied emergency aid until the Coast Guard arrived. In other news, FOX 4 reports a boat captain was medically evacuated from a parasailing boat after suffering from heat exhaustion near Fort Myers Beach.boating safety

These incidents illustrate the diverse risks faced by people on the water off the coast of Southwest Florida.

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