LAKE WORTH, FL – A car swerved in front of a tractor-trailer on I-95 in Lake Worth, FL on Wednesday, September 8, 2010 at about 3:00 a.m. causing the semi truck to crash against the wall and burst into flames. The accident tied up traffic for hours while crews cleaned up the mess.
Lake Worth is in Palm Beach County, Florida about 7 miles south of Palm Beach and about 62 miles north of Miami.
According to the FHP (Florida Highway Patrol) at least two passenger cars and a big rig were involved in the accident. The tractor trailer was hauling a load of of plastic pipe (PVC pipe).
The semi truck turned over on its side after crashing into the wall causing PVC pipe to be scattered all over the roadway. The crash also ruptured the tractor-trailer’s fuel tank, which caused it to burst into flames.
The accident occurred about 3:00 a.m. early Wednesday morning during a time when it was pouring rain. It is not known if the rainy weather played a role in the incident or not.
Details of the incident were released shortly afterward. According to the FHP, the accident occurred after a 2005 Mazda, driven by Hudson Furtado, from Orlando, FL lost control of his vehicle and veered into the path of the tractor-trailer.
Two other vehicles traveling southbound on I-95 ran into the debris that was scattered across the roadway.
According to State Troopers, Furtado faces charges of failure to use due care.
Roger Douglas, from Lake Butler, Florida was the driver of the big rig. Fortunately, he made it out to safety. The FHP website initially reported that there were injuries, but other than that there are no other details available regarding injuries in this accident.
About 25 firefighters from 12 units spent hours dousing the 18 wheeler to bring the fire under control. A special operations team was sent there to help out.
News reporters arriving on the scene in the morning were given masks to protect them from the smokey environment.
Below is a Google street view of the section of southbound I-95 near the accident site. You can see the walls that enclose the traffic lanes where the tractor-trailer crashed into and turned over. You can click the mouse and drag it around to get a full 360° view of the surrounding highway.
It was slow going for commuters in the morning traffic while cleanup crews spent time removing the tractor-trailer wreckage and picking up all the PVC pipe that were littered across the highway. The cleanup was completed and all traffic lanes were reopened as of 8:25 a.m. Wednesday morning.
Some of the debris that flew from the force of the collision struck one passenger car shattering the windshield and damaging the hood.
Published by Atlanta truck accident lawyer Fried Goldberg LLC, nationwide truck accident attorneys specializing in commercial truck injury law across the United States. For more information about Florida trucking laws, truck injury causes and victims rights, talk to an expert truck attorney for a free initial consultation at 1.877.591.1801.