Video: A State Trooper Gets Sideswiped By a Tractor Trailer

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New video shows a tractor trailer side-swiping into Trooper Avila’s vehicle, then clipping the officer as he stood on the shoulder of Interstate 70 in Washington County.

Avila can be heard telling the passenger in the stopped vehicle to stay in the car, just before he collapses near a guard rail.

The incident draws attention to the little-known, newly adopted “move over” law, which requires drivers to lower their speed and move over to the left lane when they see an emergency vehicle on the shoulder.

Avila is currently undergoing physical therapy for injuries to his shoulder, back, legs, and, treatment for post-concussion syndrome. “Sometimes I look at it, and it just doesn’t seem like there’s light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. “But I’m able to walk and doing a lot of physical therapy to get back.”

While the tractor trailer received a fine for the offense, doctors still aren’t sure when Avila will be able to return to work.

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