Anytime that a semi truck is involved in an accident with a passenger vehicle there is a substantial likelihood of catastrophic injuries. Obviously semi trucks are exponentially larger and heavier than passenger vehicles. This fact often leads to sever damage to the passenger vehicle and a disproportionate likelihood of serious injury to the occupants of the smaller car or truck.

Last night a California woman was killed when the pickup truck she was driving collided head-on with a semi tractor trailer. This fatal truck accident occurred just after seven o'clock. The pickup driver's teenage daughter was also in the vehicle at the time of the crash and suffered injuries that were described as non-life threatening. The semi truck driver was not injured in the crash. Law enforcement officials are still investigating the crash and it is not yet clear which vehicle may have initially crossed the center line.

In addition to the sheer size and weight of semi trucks, their shape may also contribute to more severe injuries during a crash. In the same way that a smaller passenger car is likely to suffer more serious damage in a crash with a sports utility vehicle that rides much higher, any passenger vehicle may sustain more damage with an even taller semi truck. Rather than colliding only lower on the body of the car and allowing the bumper to absorb the potential impact area of a semi is taller than most cars and SUVs.

In the photo accompanying the news article linked below you can see that the passenger vehicle is nearly completely crumpled while the semi truck appears to have sustained no damage at all.

Source: KVAL News, "Driver killed in head-on crash with semi," Feb. 15, 2012