Biloxi Personal Injury Law Blog

Summer in Mississippi means wearing as little as you can get away with. For many people, that means living in flip-flops.

While these may be the preferred footwear for hot, muggy Mississippi summers, driving in them can be dangerous. They shift around on your feet and can easily slip off. Even if they don't become lodged under the gas or brake pedal, you're left driving barefoot, which isn't safe. Further, if you're searching around for them on the floor, you're not paying attention to the road.

When you're sharing the road with a commercial truck, you hope that the driver isn't under the influence of drugs or alcohol or exhausted from driving for more hours than he or she is allowed. You should also be hoping that the driver isn't dehydrated.

According to a study recently published in Physiology & Behavior, dehydration can be just as dangerous as driving drunk. During the scorching hot summers that we have here in Mississippi, dehydration is a real possibility for drivers who don't take the time to rehydrate regularly, especially if they have to load and unload cargo as part of their jobs. Even making a stop for gas on a hot, muggy day can leave a person craving water or Gatorade.

A Mississippi farmer is dead after a logging truck collided with his pickup truck. The driver of the logging truck was hospitalized for his injuries. The crash occurred the morning of June 7. The man who died was delivering strawberries from his family farm. News video of the aftermath of the crash shows the crumpled remains of the pickup truck.

The intersection where the crash occurred, Highway 302 and Cayce, has seen its share of collisions, in part because of how many factories are in the area. One man who witnessed this fatal crash said, "This happens almost every week. In the last three weeks there's been some serious accidents." He said that the morning hours between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., when this crash occurred, are among the most dangerous times there. The late afternoon/early evening commute hours, between 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., are also dangerous.

Most of us will spend at least some of the upcoming summer on a road trip, whether it's a weekend at the lake or a drive to Disney World. No one wants their vacation marred by a crash. We can't control what other drivers do, but there are steps we can all take to protect those in our vehicle.

First, make sure that your vehicle is ready for a road trip. This includes making sure you've got plenty of oil, water and battery life. Be certain the tires are in good shape. A blowout can cause a serious accident.