Accident on Highway 50 claims life of Silver Springs man

An accident on U.S. Highway 50 claimed the life of a Silver Springs, Nevada man recently. As many of our readers may know, Silver Springs is about 45 miles from Reno.

The Nevada Highway Patrol is investigating this accident and has asked for witnesses or those who have information about this accident to come forward. Officers indicated that they do think drugs or alcohol may have played a role in this tragic accident.

Police say that the driver of a sedan hit the front of a vehicle that was attempting to enter the highway at the point where it intersected with a local street. Drivers coming on to a highway are expected to yield to traffic that is already on the highway, but this driver, who was operating a Ford F-350 truck, did not do so.

Judging by the damage to the vehicles, the driver of the sedan did not have time even to slow down, much less stop, before hitting the truck once it pulled out unexpectedly. Both drivers were critically injured, but the operator of the sedan, who was a 40-year-old man, succumbed to his injuries shortly after arriving via helicopter at a nearby hospital.

While certainly there will be more investigation in to this crash, it looks as if it will go down as yet another deadly drunk driving accident in this state. This is hard to understand since, for decades now, law enforcement officers and others have repeatedly and sternly warned the public about the dangers of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The family of the victim may be eligible to receive compensation from the at-fault driver, and this compensation could include punitive damages.