Jeff Wigington didn't sound surprised when he was told that a van carrying a church group crashed on Interstate 66 near Marshall recently.

Wigington is an attorney from Corpus Christi, Texas, whose firm, Wigington-Rumley LLP, specializes in cases involving such vehicles. He has granted interviews on the topic to nationally recognized newspapers and appeared on the television show, 60 Minutes II several years ago.

"I've handled cases (like the recent crash here) all across the country for years," said Wigington. "In our cases we are usually required to test the vehicles," he added, noting the firm uses experienced test drivers in order to do so.

Based on his experience, Wigington maintains that so-called 15-passenger vans are "the most unstable vehicles on the roadways." In fact, he alleges that they are even more unstable than sports utility vehicles (SUVs).

"These vehicles started out as cargo vans in the 1970s. The manufacturers added seats without looking at how that affects stability. When they are fully-loaded, (the vans), they have a higher center of gravity which shifts rearward," Wigington said. "(In our tests) we've discovered that these vans can roll over at speeds of less than 40 mph on clean, dry pavement.

The weekend wreck

Ten people were reportedly injured in the accident on I-66 on Aug. 27.

According to Trooper Rob Lawson, who is assigned to the Area 12 Office in Warrenton, the wreck happened near the 17.9 mile marker of eastbound I-66 near Marshall.

Silvana Perez, 29, of Springfield, was reportedly driving the 1997 Ford E350 in the right lane when a tire blew out, causing the vehicle to veer off the road to the right. Perez over corrected and the van went off the left side of the road, where it dug into the ground and flipped twice, Lawson said. No other vehicles were involved, he added.

Associate pastor Jonathan Gray from Christ Chapel in Woodbridge said a staff member and 13 college-age members of the church-sponsored Masters Commission program were on their way back from a retreat when the wreck occurred. He said last week that everyone is expected to recover from their injuries.

"I've had cases like this before. Once a driver loses control of one of these vans, it is difficult (to recover), " Wigington said. "Tire failures are fairly common. Often it is the left rear tire because of unequal weight distribution (in the vehicle)," he added.

A different opinion

Daniel Jarvis is a spokesman for Ford Motor Company assigned to address safety issues. He has a different opinion about the recent accident here and the overall safety of 15-passenger vans.

Specifically, Jarvis said the fact that all 14 people involved in the wreck on I-66 survived the incident and are expected to recover from their injuries speaks well to the overall safety of the vehicle.

He also cited statistics compiled by the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration to show that "large passenger vans" are not as dangerous as some people claim.

"The data compiled by NHTSA shows that rollovers involving these passenger vans are actually rare events," Jarvis said. Only 2.7 percent of all rollover accidents involving such vehicles result in fatalities or major injuries, he added.

Jarvis also said that Ford's large passenger vans are now equipped with "roll stability control," which reduces the risk of rollover accidents.

Different driving skills are necessary in order to avoid becoming involved in a rollover accident while driving a large passenger van, Jarvis added.

"A lot of the accidents that do occur happen when someone uses sudden movement (of the steering wheel) to try to get the vehicle back onto the road after a tire fails or there is another emergency," Jarvis said. "The NHTSA recommends that drivers don't use sudden movements or turn the wheel hard when driving large passenger vans."

A bit of background

In addition to Ford Motor Company, Wigington said 15-passenger vans have traditionally been manufactured and sold by General Motors and Chrysler Corporation.

"Chrysler has stopped making 15-passenger vans. GMC has a small segment of the market and their vehicles have a longer wheel base as compared to Ford vans," Wigington said. Ford Motor Company still "dominates the market" in terms of sales and manufacturing, he added.

According to information included on the Web site, www.vehicle-injuries.com, 15-passenger vans made by Ford Motor Company include certain models in its "Econoline" or "E" series. Two examples are the Ford E350 and Club Wagon E350.

There are approximately 1.4 million 15-passenger vans registered in the United States, according to data provided by the NHTSA. They are "widely used by churches, community organizations, schools and colleges," according to information the Wigington-Rumley Web site.

It is unknown how many, if any, 15-passenger vans are registered to groups from Fauquier County.

Independent appraisal

In recent years, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the NHTSA have issued advisories and recommendations pertaining to the safe operation of 15-passenger vans.

Based on its investigation of two accidents involving the vehicles, the NTSB issued 16 safety recommendations in 2003. Specifically, the organization recommended that all 50 states and the District of Columbia "establish a driver's license endorsement for 12- and 15-passenger vans ..." The NTSB further suggested that drivers should have to "complete a training program on the operation of 12- and 15-passenger vans and pass a written and skills test" in order to obtain it.

Special endorsements are not required for the operation of 15-passenger vans in Virginia.

The NHTSA issued an updated advisory pertaining to 15-passenger vans last year. According to information on the agency's Web site, the advisory was the fourth it issued in five years.

According to the NHTSA, The "good news" is that "such consumer alerts and educational efforts are apparently working to help reduce fatalities in 15-passenger van rollover crashes." Data provided by the organization indicates that the number of deaths resulting from rollover crashes dropped from 81 percent in 2000 to 52 percent in 2003.

E-mail the reporter: abogdanovic@timespapers.com