Chevrolet Pickup Truck

Often times these rollovers are caused wholly or in part by tire failures, tire tread defects (detreading or delamination), poor stability design, poorly designed suspension system and inadequate brakes. Once the rollover occurs, the occupants face additional dangers from weak roof supports that crush or collapse, weak seatbacks that fail, the lack of headrest or head restraint devices, overly aggressive airbags, defective or poor fitting seat belts, dangerous lap only belts, seat belt buckles that open during crashes and finally window glass / windshields that allow passengers to be ejected during the rollover.Note the resulting severe roof pillar collapse in this Chevy 1500 Truck Rollover. The front roof header and side rails have buckled flat level with the body of the pickup truck. The occupant’s safety zone was severly compromised.

ROLLOVER INJURIES FROM ROOF CRUSH

During a SUV rollover the roof pillars, front roof header and side roof rails often can collapse and invade the occupant safety zone. When this happens the roof is pushed into or forced into the occupant, often resulting in neck fractures that can render the passenger or driver a paraplegic, quadriplegic or brain damaged or even worst death. These rollover /roof crush injuries result from shear and flexion forces unto the neck and spinal cord of the occupants. Roof crush injuries are caused by the energy of the vehicle in a roll creating compressive forces pushing down on the top of skull when the head is in an upright position. The compression causes a bursting fracture in the C4 to C7 of the cervical spine. This bursting fracture causes a loss of intravertebral space both anterior and posterior.

Diving type injuries can occur from defective seatbelts allowing too much slack and body movement, resulting in the occupant diving into the roof during the rollover. Often it can be proved by biomechanical experts that most of the spinal damage occurs from the roof crushing verses the occupant diving into the roof. Similar neck, head & spinal injuries can also result when the rollover occupant is thrown or ejected from the vehicle during the roll. Even in low speed rollovers the energy that is absorbed by the person ejected during the impact with the pavement or ground is deadly.