Texas Woman Killed in Tractor-Trailer Accident

A woman was killed in Reeves County, Texas, on Jan. 9 after being hit head-on by a tractor-trailer, News West 9 reported. The semi truck’s 55-year-old driver, Esteban Padilla-Mena of Whittier, California, was carrying a passenger while driving east along Interstate 10. The vehicle crossed the center median and entered the westbound lane, where it struck the car of 44-year-old Wajma Popal of The Colony, Texas. After striking the Nissan Altima, the tractor-trailer rolled and struck another semi truck that was traveling behind Popal.

Popal was declared dead at the scene, while the occupants of both trucks were uninjured. In 2018, the most recent year for which data is available, the Texas Department of Transportation counted 465 fatal crashes involving tractor-trailers. That is up from 433 the year prior.

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