Following the accident to the Ride the Ducks tour bus in Seattle which was responsible for the death of five people with several others injured, the Utilities and Transportation Commission have released their report showing that there were 442 violations of safety protocols.

The commission will shortly decide whether or not Ride the Ducks will be allowed to resume service and how much to fine the company – they are allowed to impose a fine of up to $1,000 for each violation.

The company has offered full cooperation and if they are allowed to resume service they will no longer use the bridge where the accident occurred.

Should the company be allowed to continue the vehicles must pass federal Commercial Vehicle Safety inspections and improve its safety ratings from unsatisfactory to conditional by the end of January. They must also produce a safety management plan showed what action they have taken for each violation.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an accident and that accident occurred in the Puget Sound area or anywhere in Washington State, please talk to the Seattle accident attorneys of the Budigan Law Firm right away. Call us at (206) 284-5305 or contact us online today to schedule your free initial consultation.

On Thursday, September 24, four people were killed and dozens injured when a “Ride the Ducks” amphibious tour vehicle and a charter bus transporting foreign students collided.

In addition to the four dead, 12 people were in critical condition and many more suffered minor injuries in the crash that also involved two other vehicles.

The Aurora Avenue Bridge where the incident occurred carries Washington Highway 99 over Lake Union, with three lanes in each direction and has no barrier to separate the traffic in the north and southbound lanes. Emergency crews were quick to arrive on the scene with Northwest Hospital just one of several hospitals receiving patients.

Although investigations are still being carried out in to the cause of the crash, concerns have been raised before about the safety of these amphibious boats which were designed as military crafts and not to navigate the narrow streets of the city. The duck drivers are required to not only drive the vehicle but also be a tour guide and entertainer; all of which some feel is too much for the driver. Previous lawsuits against “Ride a Duck” have included a motorcyclist who was run over and dragged some distance in 2011 and in May 2015 when Elizabeth Karnicki was killed by a “Ride the Ducks” vehicle attributed largely to the vehicles “huge blind spots”.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an accident and that accident occurred in the Puget Sound area or anywhere in Washington State, please talk to the Seattle accident attorneys of the Budigan Law Firm right away. Call us at (206) 284-5305 or contact us online today to schedule your free initial consultation.