October 4th, 2010 | 
Author: CHARLOTTE, NC – A semi tanker truck crashed and overturned Thursday morning, September 22, on a highway in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. The truck accident, which occurred on the Brookshire Freeway near the city of Charlotte, caused the trailer section to break open and spill part of the semi’s cargo of flour out onto the roadway. The accident area is near the border with South Carolina in the southwest section of the state, about 79 miles south of Winston-Salem, NC and about 76 miles northeast of Spartanburg, SC.
On Tuesday morning a Mack semi tanker truck was on North Graham Street, traveling through Mecklenburg County, NC. The tanker of the truck was filled with a cargo of loose baking flour. The identity of the driver and the company he was working for has not been released.
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The truck accident occurred at around 7:40 a.m. Thursday morning as the semi tanker was attempting to enter the Brookshire Freeway. According to police the semi tanker truck turned off North Graham Street and got on the highway entrance ramp leading to the westbound lanes of the Brookshire Freeway. The unidentified driver of the semi suddenly lost control of the tanker as it moved down the ramp and the flour truck flipped over onto its left side. The driver was momentarily trapped in the overturned truck.
No other persons or vehicles were involved in the truck accident.
Emergency personnel from Charlotte and Mecklenburg County responded to the site of the overturned semi tanker. The driver was apparently able to get out of the cab of his Mack semi and was not injured in the truck accident.
The impact of the truck accident broke the tank section open and the cargo of loose baking flour spilled out onto the freeway. The loose flour created a potentially dangerous condition on the road surface and highway crews were brought in to clean up the spilled cargo. Crews also offloaded the flour that remained in the tanker and transferred it to another truck. Once the tanker was empty a heavy duty tow truck used a crane to get the tanker truck back on its wheels so it could be moved off the freeway ramp.
The truck accident caused serious traffic delays throughout the morning commute as police shut down traffic lanes and diverted vehicles around the overturned semi truck. Officers also shut down several entrance ramps to westbound Brookshire, backing up traffic in the downtown area of Charlotte. Some of the biggest delays were seen in the area between Interstate 77 and the John Belk Freeway.
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Authorities conducted a reconstruction of the rollover accident but have not released their findings at this time. There are several possible causes for the truck accident, such as excessive speed or a shift in the cargo that pushed the tanker off-balance. It is not believed that drugs or alcohol are factors in the incident.
No charges have been made at this time and the truck accident remains under investigation.
Gordon Elias & Seely, LLP recommend that if you know anyone who has been injured or killed as the result of a commercial truck accident involving a semi truck, 18 wheeler, big rig, tractor trailer or bus, tell them to immediately contact a qualified truck accident lawyer for advice. Often times the truck company and the truck driver will be from other states other than where the accident occurred. Truck accident attorneys often times have relationships with other experienced truck accident attorneys licensed in other states. Gordon, Elias & Seely LLP are licensed in Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana and Washington, DC and have informal relationships with other truck lawyers. If you contact them, they will be able to assess your venue selection. Visit their page about NC truck accidents or call 800.773.6770.
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