Friday, June 18, 2010

Loose Trailer Chemical Spill In Washtenaw County



Chemical Spill In Washtenaw County



Washtenaw County Hazmat crews and the Augusta Fire Department spent Friday morning cleaning up a chemical spill on Willis Road, east of Stony Creek.

Michigan State Police Trooper Josh Reeber said the chemical, anhydrous ammonia, was realeased when a crop service trailer unhitched and rolled over into a field.

It took more than two hours for the crews to get the small chemical spill under control Friday morning.

Reeber said the chemical is not lethal in small quantities, but can be tricky to deal with if inhaled in large amounts.

Reeber said officers dealing with anhydrous ammonia is a concern.

"We've had officers who have died when they opened a trunk and there was a meth lab, and they opened the container. The anhydrous ammonia comes out and just from inhaling it it can attack their lungs and they can die instantly," he said.

Reeber said there was no need to evacuate nearby homes, but because the wind was traveling in a southeast direction residents in a half mile radius were advised of the situation.

Reeber said officials decided that it was a small enough leak that they weren't concerned that it would travel through the air and cause harm.


The Washtenaw County Hazardous Materials Response Team is on the scene of a rollover accident that dumped a reported 1,000 gallons of anhydrous ammonia near Willis Road in Augusta Township.

Willis Road is closed between Hitchingham and Stony Creek Road. The truck rolled over west of Pittman Road.

No further details were available at noon.

Trailer leads truck to flip on interstate





Billy W. Hobbs/Staff
Two Augusta men were injured when the driver of this pickup truck lost control on Interstate 20 in McDuffie County.

Two men who work for the Salvation Army in Augusta managed to escape serious injuries after they were involved in a wreck on Interstate 20 in McDuffie County.


Trooper First Class Mike Callaway of the Georgia State Patrol post in Grovetown identified the victims as: William Lee Welch, of the 800 block of Heard Avenue in Augusta, and Henry Ross, formerly of Thomson, who now is living in Augusta.

The victims, who received various visible injuries, were treated at the scene by personnel with the McDuffie County Emergency Medical Services and firefighters/first responders with the McDuffie County Fire/Rescue Services. They were taken by ambulance to University Hospital in Augusta where they were treated and released.

Trooper First Class Willie Ramsey said Mr. Welch was driving a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck with a Salvation Army trailer eastbound along I-20 shortly before 12:30 p.m. last Thursday.

"The trailer got loose with him and caused him to lose control of the pickup," Trooper Ramsey said.

The pickup then turned over at least once.

The victims, who were both seat-belted, managed to crawl out of the truck Medical personnel discovered the victims sitting on an embankment overlooking the passing traffic.

The pickup truck along with the trailer sustained extensive damages in the crash.



Web posted on Thursday, May 20, 2010

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Loose boat trailer runs into house



26 days ago | 2748 views

No one hurt when boat runs into house off Old Dalton Road
Read more: http://romenews-tribune.com/view/full_story/7479135/article-No-one-hurt-when-boat-runs-into-house-off-Old-Dalton-Road?instance=news_page_secondary_local#ixzz0qunWFwIb

The coupling of a trailer holding a boat came loose Wednesday afternoon, sending the boat into a home at 12 Mark St., off Old Dalton Road, said Floyd County Police Officer Buddy Parris.

The driver, Renderal Adams, 30, of Rome, was driving south when the incident occurred, Parris said.

No one was injured.

Trailer towing bill to be drafted...we're ready to Help!




Trailer towing bill to be drafted

WFRV News

GREEN BAY (WFRV) - A recent accident in our area has lawmakers calling for tougher regulations on towing trailers.

You may remember 19 year old, Whitney Rodder from Kiel died last month when a trailer from a pick-up truck came loose and hit her car.

Senator Dave Hansen of Green Bay says he has found the State can do more to make sure these type of accidents don't happen.

He hopes to draft a bill by January that will make towing regulations stiffer.

Death is a warning about towing trailer



Editorial: Death is a warning about towing trailer

May 17, 2010

The death of 19-year-old college student Whitney Radder on U.S. 41 last month should serve as a cautionary tale for anyone who has ever pulled or plans to pull a trailer.


What killed Radder was a trailer that unhinged from a pickup and crashed into her car. The truck driver was cited for towing with improper safety chains and having couplings, or hitches, that failed to meet standards. The latter is a common citation in more than 50 percent of accidents of this sort, which are more common than you might think.

Between 1975 and 2008, Wisconsin reported 377 deaths and more than 11,000 injuries associated with passenger cars towing trailers.

Sen. Dave Hansen, D-Green Bay, wants to draft a bill that would call for tighter trailer regulations. While well-intentioned, it's unlikely that tighter regulations or higher fines would make a difference in the habits of drivers.

Education is the key here, even for people who have pulled trailers for years.

How many of us who haul a trailer have received any kind of training on the safe and proper way to hook them on? Obviously, no one wants a trailer to come loose, but no one thinks it can happen to him.

Wisconsin doesn't require training for hauling basic trailers, but common sense says that drivers need to know what they're doing.

Anyone who has a trailer needs to take the time to ensure that everything is in proper working order — from couplings to taillights — and that the trailer is adequately and securely attached to the vehicle.

Such precautions, which can be easily overlooked, may save a life.

Death is a warning about towing trailer

Editorial: Death is a warning about towing trailer

May 17, 2010

The death of 19-year-old college student Whitney Radder on U.S. 41 last month should serve as a cautionary tale for anyone who has ever pulled or plans to pull a trailer.


What killed Radder was a trailer that unhinged from a pickup and crashed into her car. The truck driver was cited for towing with improper safety chains and having couplings, or hitches, that failed to meet standards. The latter is a common citation in more than 50 percent of accidents of this sort, which are more common than you might think.

Between 1975 and 2008, Wisconsin reported 377 deaths and more than 11,000 injuries associated with passenger cars towing trailers.

Sen. Dave Hansen, D-Green Bay, wants to draft a bill that would call for tighter trailer regulations. While well-intentioned, it's unlikely that tighter regulations or higher fines would make a difference in the habits of drivers.

Education is the key here, even for people who have pulled trailers for years.

How many of us who haul a trailer have received any kind of training on the safe and proper way to hook them on? Obviously, no one wants a trailer to come loose, but no one thinks it can happen to him.

Wisconsin doesn't require training for hauling basic trailers, but common sense says that drivers need to know what they're doing.

Anyone who has a trailer needs to take the time to ensure that everything is in proper working order — from couplings to taillights — and that the trailer is adequately and securely attached to the vehicle.

Such precautions, which can be easily overlooked, may save a life.

Trailer broke loose from the vehicle




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John C. Crosby was towing the University of Utah's Army ROTC trailer on I-15 when the trailer broke loose from the vehicle and took him for a wild, short ride. Thankfully, the safety chains held in place. He came to a stop in the right lane, then called his boss and asked that he send someone with another pin to secure the hitch. About that time, two men had stopped behind him and asked what they could do to help. When he told them what the problem was, one of the men went to his truck and brought back a pin. He and his companion lifted the trailer back into the receiver, secured the pin and Crosby was on his way. As he was leaving, he noticed a Salt Lake County Sheriff sticker on his savior's rear window.

Runaway trailer unhinges chaos




A RUNAWAY trailer sparked a series of incidents at the bottom of the Toowoomba Range last night.

The trailer was being towed by a Toyota Land Cruiser when it became unhinged at the bottom of the Range in the eastward-bound lanes about 7.25pm.

It came to a stop in the outside lane before three vehicles collided with it.

A Hyundai Excel Sprint, the first vehicle to collide with the trailer, and a Nissan Maxima sedan sustained the worst of the damage.

None of the occupants of the vehicles were injured. The eastward-bound lanes were closed for about 25 minutes as emergency crews cleared the scene.

Trailer dislodges on I-40



Trailer dislodges on I-40

Traffic affected

Updated: Friday, 28 May 2010, 3:10 PM MDT
Published : Friday, 28 May 2010, 3:10 PM MDT

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Interstate 40 near Rio Grande was severely congested after a camper separated from the truck hauling it on Friday afternoon.

A Ford truck carrying a trailer was traveling in the eastbound lanes of I-40 when the truck suffered a blowout.

The camper was then dislodged and made its way into the westbound lanes.

A few other vehicles were damaged by the runaway trailer.

Traffic was severely congested in both lanes while police cleaned up and investigated the crash.

Detached U-Haul Trailer Strikes, Kills Pittsburgh Artist


Detached U-Haul Trailer Strikes, Kills Pittsburgh Artist

Family, Friends Mourn Wood Sculptor

Police in Pittsburgh said a trailer came loose from a passing pickup truck and struck an artist who was carving a wooden sculpture in the city's Larimer neighborhood.Authorities said John Metzler, 46, was using a chainsaw and wearing heavy ear protection when the small U-Haul trailer broke free from the passing truck along Washington Boulevard.Police said the truck hit a divot in the road and the trailer detached, hitting Metzler as he carved the sculpture Thursday night at his Urban Tree Forge studio in the East Liberty neighborhood.Metzler was taken to a Pittsburgh hospital, where he later died from his injuries.Police questioned the driver, but did not file charges.

They are still investigating the cause of the accident and are trying to determine if the trailer was properly attached to the truck.Metzler’s father, Fred Metzler, said his son started Urban Tree Forge two years ago.“It was his life,” Fred Metzler said Friday. “He loved nature. He loved trees. He loved just being. He loved life and, I guess, most of all, he loved his friends.”On Friday, friends and co-workers gathered at the workshop to pay tribute to John Metzler. They placed flowers in front of the workshop and hung a T-shirt by the front door.

“We have employees and he had a lot of friends and a lot of customers that were in the midst of dealing with him," Fred Metzler said.“He was a personal friend,” said Jim Fowkes. “He was a real great guy, always there when you needed him.”