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Wind gust flips truck

This is one I can relate to.
The first week of December just last year 2007.
I had one 726 lb skid left in the nose of my 48 foot route trailer.
heading northbound on a rural two lane Road at the end of my route area.
I had just gone past a row of house and a barn.
I came to an open field when a gust of wind around 50 MPH hit my trailer and lifted it up in the air.
It was only the hand of God that my old Volvo day cab jackkinfed twisting it to the left,and into the side of my trailer.
Had I stayed straight I would have rolled over on my right side.
the weight of the tractor kept me from going all the way over.
I wasn't going very fast,and came to a stop withing about 200 feet.
Now with 45 years of driving expierence there wasn't anything I could of done to prevent this,other then not coming to work that day.
I was just along for the ride.
The other miracle with this jackknife was the our UPS Freight safety department reviewed all of the details including the weather conditions,and my many years in this business,their findings was a non-preventable crash.
I've been spooked by any high winds in our northern storms ever since,and am overly careful when I'm driving.
 
I feel your pain APO, Wednesday I was on the Braga Bridge in Fall River Mass when the a freak storm with 65 mph, 30 second sustained winds blew up the bay and river and hit bridge I was just going up it. I have driven in all kinds of weather in my thirty yrs of diriving something that bends in the middle, but this time I was really scared, so were the 4wheelers around me. About half way up the bridge a gust hit me and almost toppled me, the 4wheelers all backed off. At the time I was going 60mph, the gust slowed me to 25 almost instanly. By the time I hit the top of the bridge the water was spraying sideways like a fire hose. At the top of the bridge the winds pushed me or hydroplaned me across all three lanes. Usally at 7 Am the bridge is pretty packed but Iguess the initail gust that almost blow me over scared the 4wheelers away from me and the driving rain slowed them down long enough for me to build up speed to stay clear. My greatest fear wasn't getting blown over it was landing on a 4wheeler that might decide to use me as wind breaker.

I truley was scared and have the grip markers in my steering wheel to prove it.
 
One time back in 1989 I guess ,I was pulling a empty trailer just west of La Salle Peru Illinois I was on the ramp to
I-80 Eastbound when a tornado was in the area . I almost ended up on my side .If anyone remembers,was the day the tornado's hit Plainfield Illinois .It was a pretty serve outbreak of tornado's that day. The closest I've ever come to going over.
 
I guess if you get a few years of driving the big rigs under your belt stuff like this is going to happen to you.

I had two things going for me the day I almost rolled over.
first there must have been an Angel looking out for me.
this may sound silly to some of you,but theres just no other explanation to why I jackknifed,and didn't just get blown right over.
I didn't do anything other then let off the accelerator,then rode it out.
the second thing was using the smith system where I was back away from any other vehicles that I could of hit as I slid down the road with my day cab jacked into the left side of my trailer.
All in All I was truely blessed to not have gone over wacking utility poles,or smacking anyother vehicles.
as well as this crash being ruled non-preventable by UPS Freight safety department.
Theres a pretty big dent in my new UPS route trailer,and large hunk of my faring is broken off,the back left side of my cab is pushed in,and theres a dent in the back of my fuel tank.
It looks bad but the door still works ok,and I'm still driving it.

Since then anytime I hear the weather report perdicting high winds I book a vacation day,and stay home.
This is my last week of work,then I'm going to retire so now I can just relax,and pray for those of you who have to drive no matter what the weather is.
 
Apostolic said:
Theres a pretty big dent in my new UPS route trailer,and large hunk of my faring is broken off,the back left side of my cab is pushed in,and theres a dent in the back of my fuel tank.
It looks bad but the door still works ok,and I'm still driving it.
Click to expand...

Great for reinforcing your memory but makes you look like a rookie. Back when I drove skateboard, I had some dumba$$ loader intentionaly lower a door, so it would tip off the exhaust stack of the next truck that backed in. I would have caught the height issue, except the dock ramped down about 5 feet. It wasn't that I didn't see the door, but rather that flatbeds had been going in and out of it all day. I always back slow anyway, so all I did was dent the bottom door panel and bend the tip of my stack. Then this jerk starts bragging how he did it on purpose, so the next truck would hit it. The only time I have ever lost my temper at a customer. I managed to restrain myself to cussing him good, in front of his boss. However, I had to drive with that bent tip for the rest of the time I drove there.
 
How do you see riding out a near rollover is a rookie move my friend?

I've had customers guide me back to their overhead doors not looking up at the height of my trailer,and allowing me to back into the gutters on their garage.
this happened once,and I split the cost of the repairs with the guy.
After that whenever someone was guiding me back I told them to watch the top of my trailer.
You know once burnt twice shy.
 
Apostolic said:
How do you see riding out a near rollover is a rookie move my friend?

I've had customers guide me back to their overhead doors not looking up at the height of my trailer,and allowing me to back into the gutters on their garage.
this happened once,and I split the cost of the repairs with the guy.
After that whenever someone was guiding me back I told them to watch the top of my trailer.
You know once burnt twice shy.
Click to expand...


Sorry, you misunderstood. I was refering to you now having to drive the dented unit. Hence my story about me having to drive one also. I think you get 5 stars for driving ability. You can call it luck, but deep inside the luck, I suspect you made some subconscious instictive moves that made the outcome much better. The true mark of a professional!!!
 
oh yeah, i too experienced a "near topple over" many years ago driving I-95 south through maryland i believe this is where the Harve de Grace bridge is....??

i was going my "usual" 70 mph, and some winds were whipping, slowed me down real quick too.........

ah yes.....pucker power.......at times, its a wonderful thing........
 
Some times people ask me how I could have driven a tractor trailer up here in the nothern part of the US for 45 years.
I say in the winter months this season brings me very close to God.
For the simple fact that I do a lot of praying,when I'm turning the wheel and slapping the gears.
 
Apostolic said:
Some times people ask me how I could have driven a tractor trailer up here in the nothern part of the US for 45 years.
I say in the winter months this season brings me very close to God.
For the simple fact that I do a lot of praying,when I'm turning the wheel and slapping the gears.
Click to expand...

you know something....??

during winter driving, even in my pick-up truck, i too become very religious.....!!!:hysterical::biglaugh: :smilie_132:
 
Apostolic said:
Some times people ask me how I could have driven a tractor trailer up here in the nothern part of the US for 45 years.
I say in the winter months this season brings me very close to God.
For the simple fact that I do a lot of praying,when I'm turning the wheel and slapping the gears.
Click to expand...

I think the relationship you have with God is wonderful. Mine would be also, if I wasn't such a sinner. He and I have a great relationship in spite of it. I also feel closer to him, while entrusted with the lives of so many at work.
 
Well I've always felt that if you've been a trucker for as little as one full winter season with so many differnt types of bad weather driving.
You will have to believe that we are not islands.
There has to be a higher power some place, thats looking out for our well being.

For the many years I've driven truck for a living 45 winter seasons with spring coming up shortly this year.

There has been many unexplained times that one way I could have died,and taken others with me.
But I was able to cry out,thank you Jesus for taking care of me,and drove away knowing that there has to be a God thats taking mighty good care of me.
 
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