Los Angeles Fuel Tanker Truck Accident Attorneys

Types of Tanker Trucks

It is also crucial to be aware of the several types of tanker trucks in Los Angeles and how to identify them. Some are straight trucks, but you can also find semi-trucks hauling individual tanks. These tanks can also be pressurized, non-pressurized, vacuum sealed, and insulated.

They can also be categorized depending on the type of liquid they transport, and they can fall into the following categories:

• Oil tanker

• Gas tanker

• Chemical tanker

• Agricultural tanker

• Liquid food tanker

• Water tanker

• Compressed natural gas tanker (CNG.)

Each type of cargo carried by these trucks has special regulations that the trucking company and the driver must follow to prevent accidents and ensure everyone is as safe as possible from a greater chance of a future catastrophic explosion. They also differ in size and can be categorized as light, medium, and heavy-duty trucks. The larger the vehicle, the greater chance of spilling load of toxic chemicals onto the roadway.

What Do Tanker Trucks Carry?

Tanker trucks in Los Angeles can carry several different things. These fuel carriers are not high-performance vehicles. Usually, they transport dangerous materials such as gasoline and diesel. But these large diesel trucks can also transport water, juice, milk, etc. Sometimes they even transport dry materials, such as sand.

How Much Fuel Is in a Tanker Truck?

Large tankers usually weigh up to 80,000 pounds, which gives us a better understanding of how much fuel they can carry. Still, it is crucial to remember that tankers vary in size, so not all of them can transport the same amount of fuel and natural gas.

Small tankers may only carry 1,000 gallons, while the largest tankers can carry up to 9,000 gallons of fuel or any other liquid.

Common Tanker Truck Accidents

Most tankers can suffer the same accidents and collisions as other vehicles, such as rear-end collisions, jackknife accidents, etc.

However, due to the design and cargo of these vehicles, they are exposed to additional risks, such as the following:

• HAZMAT spills

• Fires and explosions

• Natural gas exposure.

Remember that these trucks carry dangerous materials that can be highly hazardous to people and the environment, such as natural gas and gasoline, which is why they mustn’t spill or leak. The drivers must also be properly trained to avoid collisions that could cause the natural gas to spill or explode.

Tanker Truck Rollovers

One of the most common tanker truck accidents is rollovers. More than 1,300 cargo tank rollovers happen yearly in America, including in Los Angeles, but most can be prevented with adequate safety measures.

Many myths surround tank rollovers, such as that poor driving conditions cause them, yet the FMCSA determined that bad weather only causes about 4% of these accidents. The second myth regarding these semi-truck accidents is that speeding may cause them, but crossing the speed limit is only a factor in 28% of them.

Others commonly believe that inexperienced drivers cause these accidents, but more than 66% of truck accidents in Los Angeles involve drivers with more than ten years of experience. Therefore, the following are the three main reasons for tanker truck rollovers.

Driver Error

The years of experience the driver may have doesn’t matter; they can still make mistakes that could be easily prevented. Sadly, a moment of negligence can have terrible consequences, such as not paying attention to the road and causing a rollover that spills out all the liquefied natural gas.

Vehicle Condition

Another common cause of truck rollovers is poor vehicle maintenance, such as poorly installed brakes that may stop working in the middle of the road.

Size and Weight of Loads

The last common cause of commercial vehicle rollovers in Los Angeles is the size and weight of the loads, especially if the tank isn’t full. This means the load can “slosh and surge,” causing instability and a drastic weight shift, especially when the truck turns or stops.