This animation depicts a fatal accident whereby an SUV pulls out into the oncoming path of a tractor trailer on a high-speed roadway. A construction company had placed signage in front of a residential driveway. The resident departs their property, but their visibility of the road is inhibited by the sign. A tractor trailer traveling on the road is unable to take evasive action and impact occurs. Our engineers were engaged to reconstruct the accident and to determine whether the signage contributed to the fatal event.

Our drone scene inspection data, vehicle inspections, review of accident photos, and photogrammetry results helped to establish the parameters leading up to the impact of the vehicles. A critical piece of the reconstruction was whether the resident was able to see the oncoming tractor trailer and vice versa. Visibility studies were completed based on three potential locations of the resident’s vehicle on their driveway prior to entering roadway traffic. Multiple animations of the scenarios were assembled to help determine the probability the signage inhibited clear visibility of both drivers, resulting in an unfortunate outcome. The animation work done for this case was used by the plaintiff and defense attorneys to help everyone understand the significance of the visibility issues involved.