This Thursday morning has been a dangerous one for North Texans. Three traffic incidents, at least one fatal, have occurred since early this morning. All three involved large trucks and highways. Be aware of backed up traffic from on-going police investigations and take the time to be particularly cautious on the roads.
The first incident occurred at 2am on I-35 E at Inwood Road. A motorcyclist hit the curb on the highway and lost control, eventually falling off his bike. An 18-wheeler, trying to avoid the motorcyclist, locked his brakes and hit two other northbound vehicles.
In a catastrophic domino effect, a pale colored SUV swerved to avoid the 18-wheeler and ran over the motorcyclist who was lying in the road. The 24 year-old motorcyclist was killed, and the SUV who may otherwise not have been at fault, fled the scene. The police are still looking for the hit-and-run vehicle.
A few hours later in Grand Prairie at 6 am at the beginning of rush hour on east I-20, there was another multi-vehicle car wreck in which at least three were injured. An adult and two teenage women had to be cut out of their vehicle by the fire department after their Chevy had rear-ended a dump truck.
The dump truck had stopped at a construction site, and the Chevy rear-ended the dump truck with such force that it caused the Chevy to spin into other lanes. The already severely damaged Chevy was then hit by two different 18 wheelers. After being rescued by the fire department, a teenage woman in the back seat was flown to the hospital by helicopter while the other two passengers went the hospital by ambulance. Their current condition is unknown.
The last wreck happened at 10:15 at the critical juncture of the Dallas North Tollway and LBJ 635. An 18-wheeler tipped over and crushed a nearby Chevy Cruze while at the same time knocking over a concrete barrier into oncoming traffic.
The 18-wheeler was traveling from W I-635 to the northbound tollway when he lost control and his entire truck fell sideways. The petite 4-door Chevy was stuck underneath the trailer’s load. Bystanders rushed to rescue the 49-year old Chevy driver from his ill-fated rental car. The driver was taken to the hospital for neck and back injuries.
The accident could have turned even more disastrous when the concrete barrier dividing the north and sound bound lanes of the tollway was knocked over by the reckless 18-wheeler as it tipped over. The barrier was sent into a south-bound SUV. Thankfully, no one in the SUV was injured. It will take until later this afternoon for traffic on the northbound side of the Dallas North Tollway to open to a steady flow of traffic.
Even after traffic patterns have gone back to normal, remain focused as you drive home tonight during evening rush hour. Texas’ roads can be dangerous, so please drive safely Dallas.
