Video shows semi crash into tow truck at Mitchell Interchange
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A manager at Ray's towing says his heart sank after seeing the crash that left one of their employees with serious injuries.
Video of a terrifying Monday morning crash shows a semi truck trailer completely flipping over after it crashed into a tow truck in the Mitchell Interchange.
The crash injured two people in the semi truck and a tow truck driver.
The Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office says the highway was closed for hours.
Video shows the semi truck sliding into highway barriers in the rain and crashing into a Ray's Towing truck. The flipped semi-trailer stalled all lanes of traffic.
Ray's Towing says their driver, Joe, was knocked unconscious upon impact.
"The next thing he knew he was being woken up by a deputy calling his name, telling him not to move, and he was on the floor of the truck, rain coming in and glass all around him," said Mark Salentine, manager of Ray's Towing.
Joe suffered a broken leg, broken ribs and cuts.
The semi driver and his passenger both suffered cuts and were taken to the hospital.
The Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office says the driver of the semi received a citation for driving too fast for conditions and failing to keep the vehicle under control. The truck driver held a license out of Ohio.
Salentine says every week at least one tow truck operator is killed in these kind of accidents.
"It's driving too fast for conditions, not controlling your vehicle, that sort of thing occurs," he said.
After watching the video, truck driving instructors believe the driver was going too fast in the rain and didn't brake correctly.
"From my experience, I saw the trailer pushing the truck itself. So probably the driver went into a jackknife pushed by the trailer, because he stepped on the brakes too fast," said Mhammad Abu-Sawish, owner of Future Logistics and CDL Training.
The semi-trailer was carrying 6,000 pounds of light fixtures, and experts say that's a fairly light load.
"Well 6,000 pounds is a really light load, and with light loads that we have or empty trailers, it takes us longer to stop," Abu-Sawish said.
"We have to adapt to our conditions, be aware of the situation around us, and such things are avoidable," Salentine added.
Ray's Towing says their driver is still in the hospital Tuesday, awaiting surgery to put a rod in his leg.