Pittsburgh residents have heard and seen their fair share of the serious, sometimes fatal, consequences that accompany truck accidents. Powerful vehicles such as tractor-trailers and "big-rig" trucks dwarf smaller passenger vehicles, and when the two collide, the results are often unfortunate. Large trucks don't necessarily even have to hit another vehicle - a simple rollover crash can endanger nearby pedestrians or people working around the truck.

The city has tried to address the issue, as the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $1 million to Pittsburgh police over three years to combat the truck accident rate. The police department applied for a further $230,000 in federal grants recently to conduct extra patrols with an eye on truck safety.

With that in mind, some alarming data was released last week that showed truck accidents increased by 18% in Pittsburgh between 2007 and 2009. The federal documents that contained this information also noted that the truck accident rate across Pennsylvania actually went down during the same time frame.

Truck accidents can be catastrophic, dealing serious injuries to unsuspecting drivers. These injuries sometimes heal, but the pain and suffering from such a traumatic event usually results in lost wages from missed work and large medical bills.

Should such an accident cause you or a loved one extensive pain or medical complications, seek a reputable attorney to address your legal situation. Even though a payout from a lawsuit may not bring back a lost family member or heal a serious injury, the financial windfall can help you deal with the aftermath of a truck accident.

Source: WPXI, "Pittsburgh Has More Tractor-Trailer Crashes Than Anywhere In State," Jan. 13, 2012