Mystery Surrounds Truck Tunnel Crash
Posted on Oct 18, 2007 - 8:32pm by Wayne Weisser in Trucking
According to the LA Times the cause of the wreck was a truck that lost control when it exited the tunnel on the wet road. The force of that crash caused the engine block to fly over the guard rail onto the northbound I-5. While other trucks slowed down to avoid the wrecked truck, back at the tunnel, trucks that couldn’t see the wreck around the curve started causing the chain reaction.
CHP is still investigating the initial wreck, but the mystery is – Why are there 31 vehicles and only 22 driving age people accounted for. Authorities are very sure there are no more fatalities inside the tunnel.
Theories I’ve heard have ranged from Mexican trucks, which I seriously doubt because of the scrutiny they are under right now, to the drivers must be illegals. Which is possible but nine out of 31?
My first thought was why would someone not want anyone to know their truck was involved? They need to make a claim to their insurance, wait… um… unless… No insurance, no need to report it.
Maybe the drivers weren’t all illegals, but there may have been something wrong with their CDL, if they even had one.
There are plenty of reasons for someone to leave their truck in a pile of unknown rubble:
- No insurance
- No registration
- No Authority
- No CDL
Plus if you’re in a wreck, your required to take a drug test. No driver, no truck, no drug test, no problem. Logbooks were burned up so that’s not an issue here.
About thirty percent of the trucks with a serious enough problem that the drivers or owners wanted to disappear.
Actually, that sounds about right. Which shows we need much more enforcement not only for unsafe equipment, but to make sure everyone is playing by the rules. Instead of doing the right thing and going out of business, owners cut corners and keep on trucking, undercutting everyone in their path with no regard for the rules and the odds are they will not be caught. When they are caught, they disappear and reappear with a new company and new name.
The LA Times articles are here, here and here. There’s a video report and pictures on the inside of the tunnel showing the damaged concrete.
Any theories I’m missing why someone wouldn’t want anyone to know they were in a wreck that clearly wasn’t their fault?
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I’d say you have the bases covered. I cannot think of a legit reason to abandon a truck if everything is legal.
I don’t know…it seems odd. I wouldn’t think that the percentage of trucks and drivers meeting your criteria for leaving “their truck in a pile of unknown rubble” would be that high but, other than having caught an anonymous ride to the hospital with a passerby, I can’t think of any legitimate reasons. If your theory is correct then we’ve got some serious problems to deal with in our industry.
Hopefully it’s not that high and I’d love to hear the explanation. But the last I heard on the local LA radio is that CHP is still investigating and trying to locate the drivers.
But with all the news about CDL scams and payoffs and all the bad credit and complaints on one of the load boards it’s not a pretty picture no matter what the number is.
Plus the trucks running around Calif, especially around the ports look really banged up and with the rates they get out of those ports it wouldn’t surprise me what goes on to make a buck.
You missed one Wayne…
Running like hell before the whole mess went BOOM! ! !
CHP claims to have located most, if not all, and interviewed them. I have a feeling when it is revealed, they will have be Pakistani or some such thing. Seems like more and more of these have infiltrated the industry and from what I’ve seen, most driving trucks based out of the central valley of California.
The truth about this whole accident will prevail eventually. I am not one to speculate about any situation without knowing the facts, but this situation has my mind wondering off in many directions. I think I am going to sit back on a cool stool and just wait to see what the authorities find out about the missing drivers.
It is, however, very unfortunate that this accident happened considering that hundreds of truckers have warned people about this particular tunnel in the past. It is a shame that no one listened to the professionals that use that tunnel everyday. Perhaps if local governments would open their ears a bit then accidents like these can be avoided. I personally know drivers that have been traveling that tunnel for 20+ years and all say that when they are in the tunnel, they are white knuckling the steering wheel.
It’s time for highway authorities to wake up and start listening to us pro’s when it comes to the
engineering of roadways. This industry could have such a positive inpact on how the US roadways are built and maintained if only the builders and governments would listen to the drivers.
I’ve been through that tunnel many times over the years and it was just “another day at the office”.
The 55 mph speed limit in there is ridiculous and needs to be lowered and this new generation of drivers need to get the NASCAR mentality out of their minds in their little 66 mph large cars, quit drafting and begin to pay more attention to what’s going on around you.
What is inconceivable to me is that 31 big rigs could tangle in a tunnerl only 550 feet long without someone realizing something wasn’t right earlier.
I imagine it will be a year or more before we know the facts. Other forums and blogs are publishing their conclusive evidence but they don’t count for nothing.
In the end, I imagine the CHP will take the easy way out and call it driver error. To arrive at any other conclusion, could put the liability on the State of California, and that ain’t gonna happen!
I think you right with your assumptions… But I’d love to know one more answer: How many of these trucks were pulling port containers… My observation is, that tese folks are WORST drivers with mentality of New York taxicab driver. They can’t drive, they are aggressive and… that really makes them disconnected from Real Truckers Breed.
Also, I can’t see them standing for what they have done. Neither having any connection to the JUNK they drive
Does anyone have any experience with what it feels like when exiting a tunnel? Seems like there is a change in air pressure or direction that causes a sudden jolt. Something experienced drivers get familiar with. They know it’s coming and prepare to compensate for whichever direction the truck decides to go. Not saying this guy couldn’t have been on his celphone or something at the time, but it does happen. That’s what’s great about experience; less accidents!