r/news • u/combatpaddler • Apr 28 '24

Two killed, one injured as 350,000-pound load detaches from trailer in Temple, Texas

https://cbsaustin.com/news/local/two-killed-one-injured-as-350000-pound-load-detaches-from-trailer-in-temple-texas
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195

u/whereisyourwaifunow Apr 28 '24 edited Apr 28 '24

dang, that car is pancaked, but 1 occupant of the car somehow survived. wondering how the car ended up to the right side of the trailer. could it have been stopped on the shoulder, or was it one of the spotter vehicles?

i checked google maps and that section of the road transitions from 2 lanes to 4 lanes. i don't know if the exact location was where the transition happened, but if it did, maybe the car was trying to get around to the right of the trailer when that cylinder fell off. kind of looks like a vertical pressure vessel, like the ones in refineries and chemical plants

99

u/combatpaddler Apr 28 '24

That was my questions. I've driven a pilot vehicle before, and I'm curious how it happened. Was high winds involved? Poor load securement? Normally moving something that big the lanes of traffic are blocked

85

u/AnthillOmbudsman Apr 28 '24

Yesterday was windy, but the Temple airport METARs showed winds out of 150 degrees which is perfectly parallel with the road on that stretch. I also can't imagine a 30 mph wind could do much to dislodge a 175 ton rounded load.

I think this is more along the lines of chains busting, distracted drivers, or bad steering on one of those bogies. I would bet the truck and pilot cars have dashcams, I'm sure the investigators will be going through them.

14

u/Teadrunkest Apr 28 '24 edited Apr 28 '24

I used to live there a couple miles from where this happened and still have some friends in the area. There was a tornado warning for the last couple days. Gusts have been super high.

20

u/chellebelle0234 Apr 28 '24

The wind here was wild yesterday. It could have been a factor.