It was more days of frightening truck headlines for a state that is the worst in the nation when it comes to crashes involving large trucks. Texas, which is the second-most populated U.S. state, had the highest number of annual fatal accidents involving large trucks for any of the states, in 2015, according to the most recent Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration information available. Early April of 2018 was in keeping with those findings.
The sheer size of the state, and the volume of trucking companies that operate there, may play a role in the number of Texas truck crashes. As with other parts of the country, however, the devastating injuries and fatalities that result are linked to lacking safety standards in the commercial trucking industry, and hesitancy from the government to enact stronger regulations.
Driver Believed to Have Been Ejected During Old East Dallas Truck Crash
April 6, 2018
A Detroit, Texas, man is dead after the tractor-trailer he was operating was involved in a crash with another vehicle and caught fire before partially plummeting from an interstate overpass.
The accident occurred in Old East Dallas on Interstate 30 at approximately 5:45 a.m. The details of what led to the fiery crash are still being determined.
Dallas Police investigators say that witnesses reported seeing a westbound GMC Yukon lose control and start fishtailing. The GMC then struck a guardrail on the right side of the road before swerving back across all lanes of traffic and into the path of the oncoming semi-truck. The impact of the collision between the SUV and the big rig forced the semi into a zipper wall. The semi then careened back across all lanes of eastbound traffic before the cab fell over the edge of the overpass and caught fire.
Forty-five-year-old Russell Carpenter, the driver of the big rig, was ejected from the truck during the crash and was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:25 a.m. Officials state that three other vehicles were involved in the Old East Dallas truck crash, while two other motorists were treated in area hospitals for their injuries.
Officials closed the I-30 eastbound lanes as well as the road below the overpass as hazardous-materials teams worked to clean up fuel that had spilled during the incident and emergency responders removed debris. Significant damage to the roadway will take some time to repair. Officials have not commented on when it will be complete.
Four Dead in Head-On Putnam Crash Involving Tanker Truck
April 9, 2018
Details continue to emerge on a crash in Callahan County, near Putnam, that took four lives.
The crash happened at approximately 8:15 a.m. on Interstate 20 near the Mile Marker 322 exit and involved a red pickup truck and a tanker truck. The pickup was traveling west when it crossed the center median for unknown reasons and struck the tanker, a Love’s gasoline truck.
Images from the scene show burnt and flattened debris from the pickup that is hardly recognizable as a vehicle. Reports indicate the pickup’s cab separated from the bed in the crash. The tanker remained relatively intact, though its cab and trailer were twisted to face opposite directions.
Four people were in the pickup truck, and all were ejected and killed in the crash. The driver of the Love’s tanker truck sustained minor injuries.
The Texas Department of Safety has said they will not comment further on the crash until the preliminary crash report is complete.
Semi Nearly Veers Off Houston Ramp
April 7, 2018
A similar accident to the Old East Dallas truck crash occurred just a day later in Houston; however, there were no fatalities in the accident.
Officials did not reveal why a semi-truck went off the 610 North Loop, but quickly closed the ramp between US-69 Eastex and the 610 North Loop, as well as the ramp between the 610 West Loop and US-59 South. Images captured at the crash site show a bluish-green tractor-trailer flipped upside down and hanging partway off the ramp.
No injuries were reported, and the roadways were opened later that day. One column along the ramp sustained damage.
Mother and Son Lucky To Be Alive After Being Run Over by Semi in Melissa
April 5, 2018
A mother from Sherman, Texas experienced many drivers’ worst nightmare when she was traveling with her four-month-old son to Allen: She was pinned against a barrier by a semi-truck that then drove over her car.
Smith was traveling south on U.S. 75 in Melissa at approximately 11:30 a.m. when she noticed a big rig beside her.
“There was an 18-wheeler on the side of me,” Smith told KXII. “I saw it initially and was trying to get away from it because the lanes were kinda small.”
Smith sped up in an attempt to get past the looming semi when it changed lanes and pinned her vehicle against the barrier of a construction zone.
“It was very terrifying,” Smith said. “Once he pinned us, I didn’t know what to do. All I can remember is seeing his wheels and praying that I don’t go underneath his wheels.”
Her worst fears were soon realized, however, when the car did go underneath the trailer of the semi-truck, causing the vehicle to roll repeatedly. Bloodied and bruised, Smith’s only thought was to get her son to safety, which she did, miraculously with no injuries to the boy.
The semi-truck driver who had nearly ended their lives fled the scene and has not come forward. An investigation into what may have caused the truck accident is ongoing.