Late Wednesday morning 54 year old Patrick W. Smith of Vancouver, Washington was driving a 1995 Freightliner semi truck through west central Oregon. The semi driver did not have a trailer or flatbed attached to the cab and it is unclear if the truck accident happened while he was on the way to pick up a cargo trailer. The trucker was southbound on Interstate 5, traveling through Linn County.

According to a police report regarding the truck accident, at about 11:25 a.m. Wednesday Mr. Smith was about 5 miles north of the city of Brownsville near the overpass for Boston Mill and mile marker 221 when he suddenly lost control of his semi truck for unknown reasons.

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The southbound semi truck went through the highway median and into the northbound lanes. The truck driver struggled to regain control of the semi and pulled it back into the median where it hit a culvert wall. The force of the impact sent the semi truck about 10 feet into the air and over the culvert wall. The semi cab would sail about 25 yards after this second impact of the truck accident, finally coming down on the north side of the Calapooia River. The commercial truck continued forward and ended up in the river about 10 feet from the bank, its front wheels completely under water.

No other persons or vehicles were involved in the truck accident.

The truck driver, Mr. Smith, was able to crawl out of the partially submerged cab section and was waiting when police and emergency personnel arrived at the truck accident scene. He was treated and stabilized at the site and then transported by ground ambulance to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis. His injuries were described as minor and non life threatening, and it is believed he was released from the hospital sometime Wednesday afternoon.

The truck accident did not cause any significant traffic delays on I-5. Oregon State Police were at the scene and rerouted drivers as emergency vehicles and work trucks arrived, but most of the clean-up work was done off the interstate. Fortunately the gas tanks on the semi were not damaged and no diesel fuel or motor fluids leaked onto the ground or into Calapooia River. A crew used a heavy duty wrecker to pull the semi cab section out of the river and away from the crash site. The truck sustained some front-end damage in the crash, which may be repairable.

Oregon State Police investigators reconstructed the truck accident and charged the semi driver with multiple citations. Mr. Smith was charged with Failure to Maintain His Lane of Travel for the actual crash. Police also found that the truck driver allegedly had an unspecified amount of drugs, and he was charged with Possession of Less Than One Ounce of Marijuana and the Federal charge of Possession of a Controlled Substance in a Commercial Motor Vehicle. It is believed that the driver, Mr. Smith, was compelled to submit to a toxicology screening but this has not yet been confirmed by Oregon State Police.

The semi driver or his trucking company could be held liable for the cost of cleaning up the truck accident site.

On Thursday morning 47 year old David H. Geck of Salem, OR was driving a 2003 Freightliner semi trailer truck east on the Randy Pape’s Beltline, moving through Lane County, OR. The semi driver was carrying a cargo of about 50,000 pounds of steel lumber racks on the open flatbed trailer at the time of the truck accident. The driver’s was headed north but his exact destination is not known.

At about 9:00 a.m. Thursday morning Mr. Geck had reached the area just north of Springfield. The rollover happened when the driver was attempting to get onto northbound Interstate 5, driving the semi trailer down the ramp from the Beltline to I-5. According to officials the flatbed truck was going around a curve on the cloverleaf ramp when the load of steel racks suddenly moved to the left.

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The truck driver would later tell police that he heard a noise from the flatbed just seconds before the truck accident. The shifted cargo threw the semi trailer off balance and the driver lost control. The tractor trailer became overloaded on the driver’s side and flipped over onto the interstate.

No other persons or vehicles were involved in the truck accident.

At least one of the semi’s gas tanks was ruptured in the rollover truck accident and between 40 to 80 gallons of diesel fuel spilled out onto the highway. The crash also broke the restraints holding the steel lumber racks. The construction materials fell off the flatbed and scattered across the ramp and the northbound lanes of the interstate. The semi flatbed truck came to a rest blocking several lanes of the ramp to I-5.

Emergency personnel from the Springfield Department of Fire & Life Safety responded to the overturned semi truck. The driver, Mr. Geck, was able to get out of the cab section and received minor injuries in the truck accident. Paramedics treated the truck driver at the scene but he did not require hospitalization.

The truck accident caused almost immediate delays at one of the busiest highway intersections in the county. At first vehicles were slowly passing past the overturned flatbed truck until Oregon State Police shut down the ramp connecting the Beltline and northbound I-5 and diverted traffic. Drivers were sent to southbound Gateway Street and Pioneer Parkway, onto westbound I-105, and then allowed back onto I-5.

Northwest Hazmat Inc, based in Springfield, sent a team to the truck accident site to clean up the gas and keep the spilled fuel contained. The hazmat team cleaned what they could off the highway and covered the remaining diesel fuel with gravel and dirt. Oregon Department of Transportation had highway crews at the crash site to pick up the steel lumber racks and clear other debris from the interstate’s traffic lanes. ODOT would also supervise getting the semi flatbed back on its wheels and towed off the highway ramp.

The interstate ramp reopened shortly after noon on Thursday, about three hours after the rollover truck accident.

No charges or citations have been brought and OSP continues to investigate the truck accident.

On Friday night 43 year old Cornell Liburd, of Avondale, Arizona was driving a semi trailer truck east on I-84, traveling through Sherman County, OR. Mr. Liburd was pulling an empty trailer. The region was experiencing wintery weather at the time of the truck accident and freezing rain left the interstate very slick.

The multi vehicle crash was set off at around 9:00 p.m. when a Nissan SUV went out of control on the icy roadway and slid across several lanes of the interstate. According to police, 21 year old Rosa Martinez of Walla Walla, WA was driving the Nissan and had several passengers in the SUV at the time of the truck accident including 27 year old Alejandro Ortega-Soriana of Mount Vernon, New York. After spinning around several times the Nissan finally came to a stop at the east edge of the intestate, blocking the traffic lane.

The passenger, Mr. Ortega-Soriana, had gotten out of the Nissan and was checking on the other occupants of the vehicle when the semi trailer driven by Mr. Liburd reached the scene. When the truck driver saw the stalled Nissan he attempted to take evasive action but there was not enough time and the semi hit the Nissan which then slammed into Mr. Ortega-Soriana. The force of the truck accident threw the 18 wheeler out of control and it went into a jackknife and came to a rest across both eastbound lanes of I-84.

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At that moment a Suburu station wagon reached the crash site and skidded into the disabled semi truck. The driver, 60 year old Marjorie Jackson of Irrigon, OR was able to back her vehicle away from the crashed semi just seconds before two more tractor trailers drove up on the truck accident scene. The drivers of the two semis were unable to stop their rigs on the slippery road surface and both plowed into the jackknifed semi truck.

The impact of the multi truck accident punctured a fuel tank and the three rigs exploded into flames. The night air was soon filled with hot flames and black smoke. The fire spread quickly across the three semi trailers and by the time the last flames were extinguished the 18 wheelers would be reduced to smoldering shells of destroyed metal.

Several departments rushed to the multi vehicle truck accident, including Oregon State Police and the Gilliam County Sheriff’s Department. The combined police forces shut down both directions of the interstate while firefighters from the Rufus Fire Department and Sherman County Fire and Rescue battled the flames.

Remarkably there were only minor injuries in the multi vehicle crash. The driver of the Nissan, Ms. Martinez, and her passenger, Mr. Ortega-Soriana suffered minor, non-life threatening injuries in the truck accident. They were both stabilized at the scene and then transported to Mid Columbia Medical Center where they were expected to recover.

The driver of the first semi, Mr. Liburd, received minor injuries and was also taken to Mid Columbia Medical Center. The other two drivers were able to escape their tractor trailers and were not injured in the truck accident. They were later identified as 32 year old Serghei Berdeu of Sacramento, California and 31 year old Jorge Romo of Tucson, Arizona.

The traffic lanes would be closed for more than seven hours after the truck accident, stretching into the early morning hours of Saturday. The Oregon Department of Transportation sent in crews to clear the traffic lanes and move the destroyed semi trucks to the side of the highway. A spokesperson said that the 18 wheelers would be removed after the weekend.

At this time it appears that the truck accident was set off by the disabled Nissan in the roadway. The icy road conditions are believed to be the main factor in the multi vehicle crash and it is not known if authorities suspect excessive speed.

Charges may be brought once the investigation of the truck accident is complete.

On Monday afternoon 57 year old Michael McCuen of Fall Creek, OR was driving a 2006 Freightliner semi east on U.S. Highway 20, traveling through Lincoln County, OR. U.S. 20 is locally known as the Corvallis Newport Highway. The semi was pulling an empty pole trailer. The driver’s company and destination is not known.

The truck accident occurred shortly after 3:30 p.m. Monday afternoon as Mr. McCuen approached the intersection with Oregon State Highway 229. According to officials 82 year old Martha Lockhart of Olivehurst, OR was in a 2004 Chevrolet, stopped in the northbound lane of Oregon 229.

The semi pole truck had the right of way and was proceeding through the intersection when Ms. Lockhart suddenly pulled into the path of the large commercial vehicle. The truck driver attempted to swerve to avoid an accident but the Chevy car collided with the right side of the semi.

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The impact of the truck accident threw the semi off balance and the trailer truck flipped over onto side, landing on top of a west bound 2006 Chevrolet pick-up truck hauling a trailer. The Chevy pickup was driven by 52 year old Tamara Wagner of Lincoln City, OR. Ms. Wagner worked for the State of Oregon as a Fish and Wildlife biologist and the pickup truck and trailer are owned by the state of Oregon.

After the second collision the pole trailer was severed from the Freightliner semi and careened across the highway, dragging the pick-up truck which had become stuck during the truck accident. The empty pole trailer and Chevy pickup came to a stop across the westbound lanes of U.S. Highway 20.

The semi cab section went through the intersection and came to a rest on the shoulder of the highway. Ms. Lockhart, in the Chevy passenger car, ended up on the south shoulder of Highway 20 after the truck accident.

Lincoln County emergency personnel rushed to the scene of the multi vehicle truck accident. They extricated Ms. Wagner from the state pickup truck but unfortunately she had received fatal injuries in the truck accident. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Ms. Lockhart received unspecified injuries in the truck accident. She was stabilized at the crash site and then transported by ambulance to Samaritan Pacific Community Hospital in nearby Newport, OR. Her injuries are considered non-life threatening and she is expected to recover.

The semi driver, Mr. McCuen, was not injured in the truck accident.

State Patrol officers were at the crash site to help control traffic and direct vehicles around the truck accident scene. The westbound lanes were blocked for several hours by the wreckage of the pole trailer section and the crushed Chevy pickup.

Highway crews worked throughout the afternoon and into the evening to remove the vehicle parts and debris strewn around the truck accident site. The intersection was clear and all lanes open for traffic Monday night, about seven hours after the deadly collision.

Authorities investigating the incident have determined that all three drivers were wearing their seat belts at the time of the truck accident. They have not released any other information on their initial findings or any factors that may have contributed to the crash.

No citations have been brought at this time and the truck accident remains under investigation.

Truck Accidents 360 is a truck accident attorney news blog that reports on up to date truck accidents across the United States. Since trucking laws are governed by hundreds of regulations, it is important to consult with truck accident lawyers who know the trucking laws for each state. Find more information about Oregon truck accident lawyers.

La Pine firefighters and emergency personnel responded to the scene of the truck accident. The rescue workers had to use the Jaws of Life to cut through the roof of the Suzuki so that EMTs could reach the trapped driver.

At around 8:00 a.m. Thursday morning 60 year old Ross Mann of Eatonville, Washington was driving a 1980 International semi tractor trailer south on Highway 97 in Deschutes County, near the city of La Pine. The semi truck was towing a trailer carrying a load of steel.

At the same time 43 year old Daniel Gage of Bend, OR was driving a 2000 Suzuki Grand Vitara SUV in the northbound lanes of Highway 97 in the same area of Deschutes County. Just after Mr. Gage passed First Street he began to drift into the northbound lanes of the highway near Reed Road directly into the path of the southbound semi trailer truck driven by Mr. Mann.

The truck driver saw the oncoming SUV and moved to the right to avoid a collision. However the first axle on the rear of the trailer collided with the driver’s side of the Suzuki SUV. The SUV suffered extensive damage to its front section in the truck accident and the driver was trapped inside the crushed vehicle.

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La Pine firefighters and emergency personnel responded to the scene of the truck accident. The rescue workers had to use the Jaws of Life to cut through the roof of the Suzuki so that EMTs could reach the trapped driver. Once Mr. Gage was extricated he was treated and stabilized at the scene before being taken by an AirLink medical helicopter to St. Charles Medical Center in Bend, OR. He sustained serious injuries and was listed in critical condition Thursday evening.

The truck driver, Mr. Mann, was not injured in the truck accident. His semi trailer was able to remain upright after the collision but the trailer section was damaged in the truck accident. The cargo of steel reportedly shifted during the incident but did not fall from the trailer.

Officers with the Oregon Department of Transportation were at the scene to control traffic around the truck accident site. Highway traffic was diverted into one lane of traffic while emergency personnel worked at the scene. The lane reduction would last for about an hour and backed up traffic.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Department and Oregon State Police are investigating the truck accident. They have not determined why Mr. Gage crossed into oncoming traffic. They do not believe drugs or alcohol was a factor in the collision. Weather was also not a factor.

No charges have been brought at this time and the truck accident remains under investigation.

The driver of the Buick, Mr. Easterling, was seriously injured in the truck accident.

At around 9:15 p.m. Wednesday evening, 47 year old Balihar Singh of Sacramento, California was driving a 2008 Peterbilt semi truck pulling a trailer loaded with meat. Mr. Singh was headed south on the highway but as the truck driver was traveling near mile marker 86 he moved into the northbound lanes, directly in the path of oncoming traffic. At that a moment, 79 year old John Easterling of Madras was driving north on the highway in a Buick Park Avenue.

The drivers were unable to slow down or maneuver to avoid a collision, and the car and truck slammed into each other head-on. The impact of the truck accident damaged the semi trailer and it burst into flames.

According to later reports, the Buick may have been driving without its headlights on and drifting into the southbound lanes. The truck driver may not have seen the car until the last moment, and may have been attempting to avoid hitting the Buick by moving into the northbound lanes, but reportedly the Buick pulled back into its original lane and hit the truck head on.

The driver of the Buick, Mr. Easterling, was seriously injured in the truck accident. Local emergency personnel treated him at the scene and then took him via ambulance to nearby Mt. View Hospital in Madras. Mr. Easterling was later transported by Air Link medical helicopter to St. Charles Hospital in Bend, OR, about 45 miles away.

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The truck driver, Mr. Singh, was able to escape his burning semi trailer truck without injury.

Local firefighters arrived at the scene of the truck accident and fought the flames of the burning 18 wheeler, however the fire moved fast and the semi truck was destroyed, with major damage to the front section of the rig.

Oregon State Patrol and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department responded to the scene of the truck accident and shut down a section of the highway while EMTs aided the crash victim and highway crews cleared the wreckage of the head-on collision. Officials with the Oregon Department of Transportation were also on hand to help with the truck accident investigation.

The area of Highway 97 would remain closed for more than four hours before officials reopened all lanes to traffic.

At this time no charges have been made, and the truck accident remains under investigation.

Firefighters from the Washington County No. 2 Fire District responded to the scene of the truck accident and worked to extinguish the fire on the burning 18 wheeler

At around 5:20 a.m. Friday morning 29 year old truck driver Emilio Juarez-Florain of Gladstone, OR was traveling north on Scholls Ferry Road near Sherwood in Washington County, OR. As the truck approached the intersection of Highway 219 he encountered a speeding Dodge Charger traveling in the opposite direction.

The driver of the car 24 year old Krystal Ann Mincher, aka Krystal Ushley, of Portland, OR lost control of the Dodge Charger when she attempted to take a curve in the road at a high rate of speed. She crossed over the center dividing line of the roadway, directly in the path of the oncoming 18 wheeler truck.

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The truck driver attempted to swerve to avoid colliding with the Dodge but was unable to get completely out of the way and Ms. Mincher slammed nearly head-on into the front cab of the semi trailer, causing the Dodge Charger to go into a spin and end up in a field off the roadway.
The impact of truck accident damaged one of the two 100 gallon fuel tanks on the 18 wheeler and the cab burst into flames. The truck driver was able to escape and jump away from the fiery rig and was not seriously injured.

After the truck accident Ms. Mincher and her passenger, 24 year old Carrie Smith of Bothell, WA reportedly got out of the Dodge Charger. At that point Ms. Mincher was picked up by an older while male who was driving a black SUV behind the Dodge Charger and she fled the site of the fiery truck accident, leaving her injured passenger behind at the scene.

Firefighters from the Washington County No. 2 Fire District responded to the scene of the truck accident and worked to extinguish the fire on the burning 18 wheeler. By the time they arrived the cab on the semi trailer truck was completely engulfed in flames and the intense heat melted PGE power lines that were hanging over the scene of the accident.

According to a fire department spokeswoman most of the diesel fuel was contained and did not spill out onto the road surface.

Emergency medical personnel found the passenger of the Dodge Charger, Carrie Smith, about 200 yards to the south of the truck accident scene. Ms. Smith was stabilized and then transported by a LifeFlight medical helicopter to Legacy Emmanuel Hospital in Portland. Authorities reported that she suffered non life threatening injuries and was in stable condition as of Friday afternoon.

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The Washington County Sheriff’s Department shut down a section of Sholls Ferry Road in the area surrounding the truck accident while crews worked to clear the wreckage of the semi truck and PGE crews repaired and replaced the damaged overhead power lines. Traffic was also detoured while county troopers conducted a reconstruction of the accident. The road would remain closed for more than nine hours, finally reopening in the middle of the afternoon Friday.

At this point in the truck accident investigation authorities have determined that Ms. Mincher was speeding and driving recklessly and that she caused the collision when she crossed over the center line into the opposite lane of traffic. They have also learned that the Dodge Charger she was driving belonged to an ex-boyfriend and he did not give Ms. Mincher permission to take the vehicle.

Washington County authorities have issued a request for any information on the truck accident and the whereabouts of Ms. Mincher. She faces several charges, some possibly at the felony level.

The truck accident remains under investigation.

Jackson County Fire District firefighters were quickly at the site of the truck accident and used tools to extricate the crash victims.

Shortly after 4:45 a.m. Friday morning 49 year old Kenneth W. Moss of Grants Pass, OR was driving a semi tractor truck south on Interstate 5. The truck driver was working for the Erv Bettendorf Trucking Company, based in White City, OR.

Mr. Moss was traveling in the right lane of the highway hauling two trailers filled with wood chips and going up a hill at a slow rate of speed, approximately 20 MPH. As the 18 wheeler drove through the area of the interstate near mile marker 39 he was approached from the rear by a 1996 Chevrolet van driven by 32 year old Christian Rodriguez of Santa Rosa, California. There were two other passengers in the van. Both vehicles were in the right lane of the interstate.

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Mr. Rodriguez came up on the semi truck at a fast rate of speed, and for unknown reasons failed to move into the left lane of the interstate. The Chevy van smashed into the rear end of the back trailer of the semi tractor truck. The impact of the rear end collision deployed the air bags in the van and destroyed the front section of the vehicle.

Jackson County Fire District firefighters were quickly at the site of the truck accident and used tools to extricate the crash victims. The van driver, Mr. Rodriguez, suffered fatal injuries in the rear end collision and was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.

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The front seat passenger has been identified as the driver’s wife, 36 year old Deborah Solis. She sustained critical injuries in the truck accident and was stabilized at the site and then airlifted by Mercy Flights ambulance to Rogue Valley Medical Center in Medford, OR. The passenger in the rear seat, 27 year old Immer E. Castillo-Garcia, was also seriously injured in the rear end truck accident. He was treated and then flown to Rogue Valley Hospital by Mercy Flights.

According to Oregon State Police who responded to the truck accident, the van driver and front seat passenger were wearing their seatbelts, but they were unsure if the passenger in the rear was wearing his safety restraints. The semi truck driver, Mr. Moss, was wearing his seat belt and was not injured in the rear end collision.

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Officers from OSP and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department worked together to control traffic at the site of the truck accident. They shut down the highway lanes but were allowing vehicles to move through the accident section using the interstate’s left shoulder. Officials with the Oregon Department of Transportation were also at the scene.

Authorities have not determined why the van driver did not move into the left lane to avoid rear ending the slower moving trailer truck. One theory is that the driver of the van may have been fatigued or had fallen asleep at the time of the truck accident.

No charges have been made at this time, and the accident remains under investigation.

Semi trailer and pickup truck crashes into house in Mount Angel, OR. Photo credit: Marion County Sheriff's Office

The collision occurred just after noon on Monday, December 7, 2009 at the intersection of Marquam Road Meridian Road in Mount Angel. Investigators say that the semi truck was traveling east on Marquam Road when the driver of the big rig ran a stop sign and collided with a pickup truck heading south on Meridian Road.

Location of pickup truck and semi trailer accident just east of Mount Angel, OR

The force of the collision caused the two vehicles to skid along the roadway and crash through a tree and a fence before slamming into a vacant house owned by the Trinity Lutheran Church.

The driver of the 18-wheeler was identified as Roman Fabyanchuk, 25 years old from Washington. The driver of the pickup truck was identified as Marc Moberly, 51 years old from Silverton, OR. He was airlifted by medical helicopter and taken to Oregon Health & Science University Hospital where he later died, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

Below is a Google street view of the house just east of the intersection of Marquam and Meridian Roads in Mount Angel, OR. You can click and drag the mouse to pan around the scene of the accident.

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Contact a Portland truck accident attorney if you’ve been injured in a truck accident in Portland, Oregon. Find an Oregon truck accident lawyer at TruckAccidents360.com today who specializes in representing victims involved in truck injury accidents.

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Portland OR Interstate 5 - Lower Boones Ferry Road Exit

According to Oregon State Police Sargent Dan Swift, the deceased person was the driver of the Saab. Swift stated that at about 2:10 am this morning, the Saab collided with the rear of the semi truck as it was preparing to exit the freeway, then flipped over and burst into flames. The deceased driver has not been identified and investigators are unable to determine the person’s gender at this time.

Swift also stated that the semi truck was hauling asphalt. The semi truck driver was not injured in the collision.

All northbound lanes of the Interstate were closed for about an hour after the truck accident. Two of three lanes were closed until about 7:45 am, after which all northbound lanes were re-opened.

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