"Semi (truck) hauling heavy aluminum flips..."

 

Improper load securement is a hidden hazard. This incident could have been a lot worse. Thankfully it wasn’t. This incident highlights the importance of proper load securement on flatbed trailers.

A multi-vehicle accident early Thursday morning forced the closure of the eastbound (highway).

The eastbound lanes of the Expressway were closed for several hours while crews cleaned up the crash.

The County Sheriff says a semi hauling heavy aluminum flipped.

He said it happened after a car rear ended a state highway crew that was filling potholes.

“Luckily, he did not collide with them or hurt anybody, but he did strike one of the trailers they had that had a direction arrow telling people to switch lanes,” said The County Sheriff.

The only person hurt was the semi driver, but we are told his injuries are minor.

The road has since reopened.

The Chief District Engineer for the transportation department, says they are grateful the safety measures they had in place kept more people from being hurt.

“We absolutely have protocols that we follow for the safety of our employees and our operations,” said Chief District Engineer for the transportation department. “We had an arrow message board on the shoulder that was impacted, and then we also had dump truck, which is what we call a crash cushion that is within the travel line to protect our employees during the work. That was not impacted but the arrow board was.”

Transportation officials say they have more potholes to fill, and more crews scheduled to be out on the roads, so deputies and transportation officials are asking people to keep your eyes on the road and slow down.

We pray that the injured worker recovers fully from his injuries. This news article did not state that a nearby road crew picking up trash on the side of the highway manned by prisoners from the local jail rescued the truck driver as he was trapped in his truck after the crash.

We would be remiss if we did not mention that some of the load of T-bar on the flat bed truck came off the load. Improper load securement. Instead of one strap they should have used two. Or better yet they should have used steel chains.

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