Three Dead in Massive Crash Involving Dump Truck and 18-wheeler
According to The Sentinel, three men suffered fatal injuries in a multiple-vehicle accident involving a semi and dump truck on a highway near Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday afternoon.
Details of Deadly Crash
The fatal traffic accident occurred on Interstate 81 near mile marker 45.8 at around 2:45 p.m. local time. Officials say the chain-reaction began when a southbound dump truck blew out a tire and crossed through the grassy center median and into northbound lanes.
A tractor-trailer traveling north was hit by the truck, reports The Sentinel. A pickup truck heading north then crashed into the rear of the dump truck and the semi. Forty-five-year-old James Hawkins Jr., the driver of the tractor-trailer, died at the scene of the crash.
The Sentinel reports that Michael Smatlak, 42, the dump truck driver, and Terry Danner, 61, the pickup truck driver, received an airlift to Hershey Medical Center for treatment. Unfortunately, both Smatlak and Danner would succumb to injuries from the crash. The accident remains under investigation, according to The Sentinel.
Trucking Accident Statistics
The following information is provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):
- 3,903 people died in crashes involving large trucks in 2014.
- An estimated 111,000 people suffered injuries in crashes involving large trucks in 2014.
- 74 percent of the people injured in these accidents were occupants of other vehicles.
- An estimated 438,000 large trucks were involved in police-reported traffic crashes during 2014.
- In 2014, large trucks accounted for eight percent of all vehicles involved in fatal crashes.
