Both Driver & Passenger Killed In Wednesday’s I-85 Semi Crash
Truck drivers want victim's driving log
[UPDATE]
Officials have confirmed that the truck’s driver, Christoper Dyer, died Thursday morning from injuries.
Investigators are also looking at the truck itself to determine if anything other than fatigue may have led to the crash.
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CHARLOTTE, NC — We now know a deadly semi crash that shut down Interstate 85 in Northeast Charlotte Wednesday morning happened because the driver fell asleep behind the wheel.
The driver, Christopher Dyer, 22, is in the hospital. His passenger, Rodney Watson, 45, died.
Dyer is from Jonesboro, Georgia. Watson was from Gulfport, Miss.
The interstate was closed on the Northbound side while firefighters extinguished the cotton the truck was hauling. Traffic moved slowly for more than 14 hours as the cotton continued to ignite.
The truck slammed into the bridge over I-85 near the N. Tryon exit.
I passed it,” said fellow trucker Willie Anderson. “I said,’Wow! He hit that wall.’, and I prayed that he was all right.”
Troopers say Dyer fell asleep at the wheel at 4:30 Wednesday morning. Firefighters had to pull him and Watson out of the wreckage.
Other truck drivers questioned how long Dyer had been driving when he wrecked since laws aim to prevent these accidents.
“They put limits on the amount of our hours they can work,” said AAA’s Tiffany Wright. “That’s going to help you with fatigue. That’s gonna help you address the drowsiness which are two things that can be very, very deadly if you are the operator of the tractor trailer and to those that are on the road.”
Truckers have to take a 30 minute break every eight hours of driving. After driving 11 hours, they must take a 10 hour break.
To see the law, click here.
“You got to get sleep to drive trucks,” said Anderson. “That’s the only way you’re going to be able to control this vehicle.”
Troopers say they aren’t sure if investigators checked to see if Dyer’s truck had a computerized system that logged his hours. We will check back.
“My thoughts go out to the family,” said Anderson.
