An Indiana woman suffered fatal injuries when she was involved in a truck accident with a tractor-trailer which jacknifed. The flat bed trailer slid on wet pavement and jackknifed while trying to stop for another vehicle ahead of it which was waiting to make a left turn. Part of the truck swung into the lanes of oncoming traffic, and the woman who was killed was struck by the truck when truck crashed into her.A tractor trailer is considered jackknifed when the trailer portion swings away from the tractor, or power unit, portion of the the tractor trailer in an uncontolled manner. The trailer invariably ends up in other panes of traffic where it poses a hazard to traffic in other lanes. Because the trailer swings into the other lanes in an uncontrolled manner, serious truck accidents frequently result.The principal cause of jackknifing is a loss of control while braking. This is usually the result of either driver error in braking, or from the brakes locking up due to the driver braking abruptly because he was not keeping a safe and proper lookout. This kind of accident can also be prevented through the use of a number of commercially available anti-jackknifing devices. Unfortunately many trucking companies to do not equip their fleets with this kind of equipment. Instead, they leave it up the drivers to prevent truck accidents.The responsibility for keeping all components of the tractor trailer under control is on the driver. If you or a family member is injured as a result of a truck accident with a jackknifed truck, you should contact an experienced Chicago personal injury lawyer to make sure that the scene is properly documented so that the precise errors made by the truck driver can be shown in court.