This data vastly underestimate the true magnitude of this public safety issue. 

      
       1.   Blade, The (Toledo, OH) - December 5, 1998

TRAILER BREAKS LOOSE NEAR I-280 MOWER-PART CARGO ROLLS TO STOP ON STARR AVENUE RAMP    
     A trailer filled with 31,000 pounds of lawnmower parts rolled down a hill and stopped on the Starr Avenue entrance ramp to I-280 yesterday.The driver hauling the load did not properly secure it to his tractor, according to police who investigated the accident. Prem Bhardnaj, 38, of Maple Heights, O., was heading north in the right lane of I-280 when the trailer broke loose at 10:30 a.m.It skidded off the road, smashed a guardrail, and went about 100 feet down the hill, Sgt....


       2.   Times Union, The (Albany, NY) July 9, 1998
  
Edition: EDITION: THREE STAR
Section: CAPITAL REGION
Page: B8
TRUCK'S DRIVER KILLED IN CRASH WITH TRAILER HAULING BOAT
EDINBURG -- A boat and trailer being pulled by a truck broke loose and collided head-on with a pick-up truck late Wednesday morning, killing the driver, State Police said. The boat then headed off the Batchellerville Bridge and into the Great Sacandaga Lake, they said.
Garrett Ward, 23, of Broadalbin, was pronounced dead at Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville after he was cut from the remains of his pick-up.

According to State Police Investigator Bruce Gardinier, the boat and trailer were being towed by another truck driven by Celeste Cornelia, 46, of Wallkill, Ulster County. The truck pulling the trailer and boat were westbound on Saratoga County Route 98 and crossing the bridge when the trailer came loose.

The boat and trailer then crossed into the oncoming lane where they collided with Ward's truck, Gardinier said. He said the trailer went under the front of the truck but the boat was launched through the cab, killing Ward and ripping off the truck's roof.
The boat then went over the railing into the lake. The investigator said the boat was pulled to a nearby marina before it sank.

How the trailer came loose is under investigation, Gardinier said.

Copyright (c) 1998 The Times Union
Record Number: 0709980101


       3.   Grand Island Independent, The (NE) - December 15, 1998

Trailer breaks loose, sends irrigation pipes onto vehicles   
     An unhitched trailer loaded with irrigation pipe climbed onto two vehicles in a parking lot and tore them open around noon Monday. The farm trailer was being pulled east on First Street by a Chevrolet pickup. After it passed the Liederkranz, the trailer, which was held on by just a pin, became loose and crashed into the parking lot between Walnut and Wheeler streets.It veered onto the sidewalk, jumped a concrete step and slashed a GMC van windshield before crashing down onto a...


       4.    St. Petersburg Times - August 12, 1998

One killed in collision as trailer unhitches   
     An unidentified man died Tuesday afternoon in a rush-hour, hit-and-run traffic accident when a heavy equipment trailer broke loose from its hitch and crossed into oncoming traffic on State Road 54, just west of U.S. 41.""The red car was traveling eastbound and that trailer was being towed by a wrecker,'' said Keith Clark, 40, a Spring Hill resident who was following the victim's car when the accident happened about 5 p.m....


       5.   Fort Worth Star-Telegram - November 21, 1998

Trailer breaks loose from pickup, injuring 2 women on Interstate 20   
     Two women were injured when a trailer attached to a pickup broke loose along Interstate 20 during rush hour early yesterday and collided with their car, Arlington police said.The wreck occurred at 7:32 a.m. on Interstate 20 between Matlock Road and Collins Street.The women, ages 28 and 45, were treated and released, a Harris Methodist Fort Worth spokeswoman said.The trailer, carrying a drum of yellow paint and a compressor, crossed the median going east and struck the westbound...


       6.   Fort Worth Star-Telegram - May 1, 1998

Runaway trailer injures woman, three children   
     A woman and three children were injured yesterday when the van they were in was hit by a runaway trailer.Van driver Rhonda Gerrity was taken to Harris Methodist Fort Worth, where she was listed in serious but stable condition last night.Andrew Gerrity, 4, was taken to Cook Children's Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.An 8-year-old passenger, whose name was not released, was taken to Arlington Memorial Hospital, where he was listed in good condition....

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