History of Elmendorf
The community of Elmendorf, Texas, was founded in 1885 in the southeast corner of Bexar County, Texas, and is situated between Victor Braunig Lake and Calaveras Lake. Incorporated at the same time the lakes were created as reservoirs for the metro area, Elmendorf lies just 20 minutes from downtown San Antonio and has everything the metro area has to offer. Henry Elmendorf, who would also go on to serve as the mayor of San Antonio, founded the city that was named for him, but it took nearly 80 more years before formal incorporation was granted in 1963. Another five years would go by before the first traffic ordinance was passed–the Elmendorf city police force began using tickets levied on speedy motorists in 1968 to establish funding for its operations.
Frank X. Ball was the driving force behind bringing commerce in the guise of a cotton gin to the city. The gin took advantage of Henry Elmendorf’s financial stake in the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railway, and the rail company soon established a depot in the city to ship the cotton, pottery, bricks and tile produced locally. Local companies began to take notice, establishing their presence in the city, and supplying everything from restaurants to legal services.
Elmendorf, Texas, Today
Boasting 1,500 citizens today, the town administration capitalized on the mini-boom created by the rapid development of the nearby Eagle Ford Shale field, more than doubling the standing population of the city. The rise in population was driven by the city administration’s drive to streamline businesses’ ability to establish themselves in or near the town. The economic impact for Bexar County and Elmendorf, Texas, that was brought by the Eagle Ford Shale simply can’t be overstated. It brought in the neighborhood of $25 billion to the area making a huge impact in areas such as employment as companies sprang up to supply and service the oil and gas field.
Services and supplies for oil and gas fields require big trucks. Sand trucks, water trucks, vacuum trucks, rig trucks and haul trucks trailering heavy equipment across Bexar County and beyond became a way of life in and around Elmendorf. When you have that many trucks on the road, trucking accidents are inevitable, and when a trucking accident happens, the people most impacted need help. The Patterson Group is a Texas firm specializing in personal injury claims–and they’ve been helping Texas clients obtain the justice they deserve from accidents with big rigs for more than two decades now.
Elmendorf Trucking Accidents on the Rise
Texas holds the dubious distinction of having both the highest number of occupants of other vehicles killed in large-truck crashes in 2018, at 452 and the highest number of occupants of the trucks killed at 137. Overall, nearly 13,000 Texas vehicle crashes in 2019, and nearly 16,000 of them incurred serious injuries. In Bexar County, big truck crashes made up 2,717 of the 13,000 accidents in 2019, and of those, 844 crashes were considered serious.
Just a few of the possible causes for trucking accidents include:
- Driver inattention, including eating and drinking or cell phone use
- Equipment failure, such as tires
- Poor vehicle maintenance, including brake pads, etc.
- Improperly loaded cargo
- Driver inexperience
- Overscheduled, unsafe drivers
- Driver error
If you or someone you love has suffered an injury due to the cause of the other party in an accident with a large truck, you may well be entitled to compensation, and it would be to your benefit to contact us today. The first consultation is free, and when you sit down and discuss your accident information with a lawyer at the Patterson Group, they can help you determine what are the next steps. Part of the focus in your meeting with us will be the report describing the accident that has been filed with the authorities. This report can not only describe who’s liable in the accident, but may widen the focus from the truck driver to the truck or trailer owner, service company, manufacturer, or others such as the company that loaded the cargo. Where you will find that accident report depends on which law enforcement entity was responsible for investigating and reporting on your accident.
Bexar County Car Accident Reports
If the responsible law enforcement group was the Bexar County Sheriff’s Department, the accident report will be filed by the Bexar County Sheriff’s Department representatives. Until that document has been filed and recorded by the central records division, it won’t be available. This vital document is key for insurance companies on both sides and invaluable for your legal representative. Once they are available, they can be accessed at the Central Records Division of the Sheriff’s Office. To obtain that report, you will need to provide when and where the accident happened and who was involved. A case number is not required but will assist them in getting you the correct report. The report can be obtained by mail or in person.
How To Get a Bexar County Police Accident Report
If your accident was not reported by the Bexar County Sheriff’s Department, you will need to contact the appropriate police department for the city where the accident occurred. Every police department in Bexar County has different accident reporting processes, and knowing which one is responsible for your accident report will be valuable to help the Patterson Group assist you quickly in the next steps. If your accident took place within the Elmendorf city limits, you can contact the police at the non-emergency number: 210-635-8710.
Types of Injuries Common in Trucking Accidents
No matter what organization was responsible for reporting your accident, the most urgent need after an accident is medical care. In 2019 alone, 12,897 crashes occurred in Texas, and 15,843 people sustained serious injuries due to those crashes. The Texas Department of Transportation categorizes a serious injury as an incapacitating injury, and this categorization can affect your settlement or court case greatly. Some of the most common injuries suffered in serious crashes include injuries to the head and brain, neck and back, chest and rib, pelvis and abdomen, leg and knee, foot and ankle, and injuries causing emotional and psychological problems.
Elmendorf Texas Patterson Law Group Stands for You
Whether your accident was in Elmendorf or anywhere in the San Antonio metro area, if you’re in an accident with a large truck, you need experienced legal representation to make sure you get the compensation you need. Large truck injuries tend to have a greater impact simply because you’ve been hit by the most massive vehicle on the road. Medical bills can end up not just in the thousands, but in the millions of dollars. Physical, emotional, and occupational therapies may be expensive and long-term but are necessary to help you get your life back. Patterson Law Group has been helping those who’ve been injured in wrecks like these for decades. We know Texas law, and the know-how to help you get the compensation you need to ease your pain and help you recover. Patterson Law Group stands for you. Contact us today for a free consultation.
