Unlike Minnesota, where a metro-area crash may get faster commercial-vehicle follow-up, a Brookings truck wreck can sit longer because the South Dakota Highway Patrol covers 83,000 miles of roads with limited staffing - so yes, a trucking company can lose, overwrite, or destroy key data fast if nobody demands it be preserved.

What you need right away is proof of who controlled the truck, what data existed, and where it is now.

• Get photos of the truck's USDOT number, company name, trailer number, and license plate.
• Get the crash report number from the South Dakota Highway Patrol or Brookings Police.
• Save photos of the scene, especially potholes, frost heaves, torn pavement, tire marks, debris, and vehicle damage.
• Send a written preservation letter immediately to the driver, motor carrier, broker, and their insurers demanding they keep the ELD data, black box/ECM data, dash cam video, GPS, dispatch messages, Qualcomm messages, driver logs, maintenance records, inspection reports, bills of lading, weight tickets, and driver qualification file.
• Ask where the truck is stored and whether downloads were done before repairs.

The federal trucking rules matter here. ELD and hours-of-service records are typically kept only 6 months under FMCSA rules. Engine-control data and video can be overwritten much sooner. If the company claims, "We don't have it anymore," your photos, the report, and the preservation letter help show that evidence existed and should have been saved.

Also pin down whether you are dealing with the driver, the carrier, or just a broker. The name on the trailer is not always the legal defendant. The carrier usually carries the main liability policy, often at least $750,000 for interstate freight, and more for some hazardous loads.

That matters in South Dakota because there are no caps on non-economic damages, so losing proof early can cost real money on pain, loss of mobility, and loss of independent living.