Charleston, WV — January 21, 2025, one person was injured following an 18-wheeler cargo accident early Tuesday along Interstate 64.

According to initial details about the accident, it happened across both directions of travel in the area of Oakwood Road.

Investigators said in early reports that a tractor-trailer was hauling cargo along the roadway. Somehow, cargo fell off the trailer, falling into the roadway. At least one vehicle crashed as a result. A person in that vehicle was said to have non-life-threatening injuries due to the accident.

Right now, no further information about the accident is available.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When it comes to cargo causing an accident, things are rarely straight-forward. Not only might the accident involve mistakes from the truck driver, it could even involve mistakes from the driver's employer or even other companies who had contact with the cargo.

For example, I handled a case not long ago where a vehicle crashed into improperly loaded cargo, killing someone. Through our independent investigations, we found there were three main culprits responsible for the accident. One, the truck driver failed to conduct a pre-trip check, which would have determined the cargo was improperly loaded on the trailer. Two, the driver's employer was responsible for not giving the driver proper equipment to carry that cargo. And three, the company responsible for the cargo was the one who initially loaded it on the trailer. They knew it was improperly loaded, but they didn't care. All of their mistakes together culminated in someone losing their life.

Without a proper investigation, it's possible that one or more of those responsible parties would have been let off without so much as a slap on the wrist. Instead, a thorough investigation clearly showed the mistakes that led to the accident, and the responsible parties were held accountable.

So with this accident, why did the cargo come loose? Would a pre-trip check have caught the issue? How many parties were responsible for making sure this didn't occur? Answering these questions could be key for making things right for those involved in the accident.