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In a twist of tragic irony, the location where Washington County, Pennsylvania, law enforcement and transportation officials planned to commence a campaign promoting safe driving became the scene of a fatal accident involving four semi-trucks.
The accident occurred late Thursday night near the entrance ramp at the Welcome Center on Interstate 70, just outside of Claysville, Pennsylvania. Reportedly, one semi-truck, occupied by a husband and wife from Georgia, struck another semi-truck as both were headed eastbound on I-70.
Apparently, the driver of the first truck then “went out of control” and collided into two other trucks that were parked at the Welcome Center rest stop, a Pennsylvania State Police Trooper said.
The scene became extremely fiery and gruesome, witnesses told reporters, as it all happened so fast and there was nothing that anyone could do to rescue the man and wife who were stuck in the cab of the truck that was engulfed in flames. The two died at the scene.
Hazardous material teams were also called to the scene because one of the trucks was spilling diesel fuel onto the roadway, and another truck was hauling a huge, steel coil. The accident is still being investigated by officials, but at this point it is unknown how or why the initial collision happened.
The accident reduction campaign was set to take place Friday morning at the Welcome Center, but was canceled because of the deadly crash. The annual event is called Operation CARE, or Combined Accident Reduction Effort, and was targeted at promoting safe driving for Memorial Day weekend travelers.
Source: WTAE.com, “Washington Co. Semi Crash Kills 2,” 5/27/2011. Secondary Source: WTAE.com, “Crash Reduction Event Cancelled For Scene Of Fatal Tractor-Trailer Crash,” 5/27/2011.