Ohio Truck Driver Killed in Accident

A truck driver from Ohio was killed in an accident that happened in Somerset County.

Details about the Fatal Trucking Accident

Trib Live News is reporting that a truck driver from Ohio was killed early Friday morning in an accident that happened along the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Jefferson, which is in Somerset County.

According to state trooper, 42-year-old John Michael Coleman was hauling cleaning supplies in a Kenworth tractor trailer when he hit the guardrails at about 2 a.m. The truck plowed through the guardrails and over a steep embankment, where it overturned and came to a rest against numerous trees on the side of the roadway.

Firefighters from multiple areas responded to the scene of the accident, as well as a hazmat team. According to the Somerset County Coroner, an autopsy is currently being conducted in order to determine the exact cause of death of the driver of the truck.

An investigation in to the accident remains ongoing at this time.

Important Information about Large Truck Accidents

According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there are thousands of wrongful deaths of people involved in large truck accidents every year in the United States:

• In 2013, there were a total of 3,964 people who were killed in large truck accidents that happened in the United States.
• The majority of people killed in large truck accidents were the occupants of other vehicles, and only 17 percent of people who were killed in truck accidents were the occupants of large trucks.
• In 2013, 79 percent of large truck accidents happened on a weekday.