LOG TRUCK OVERTURNS ON CURVE

Feb. 2003
03-S-6

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BACKGROUND: A log truck driver was driving his loaded truck one winter day in the South. Weather was not a factor in the accident.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS: The truck driver was 22 years old and in good health.

UNSAFE ACT OR CONDITION: The driver was driving his rig at an excessively high speed as he entered a curve in the road.

ACCIDENT: The driver lost control of the truck as he entered the curve. The truck turned over onto its right side and skidded 100 yards broadside down the highway, spilling the trailer load of logs onto the highway and shoulders. The truck came to rest astride the two-lane road. Damage to the truck was estimated at $16,000.

INJURY: The truck driver was not injured in the accident.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CORRECTION: Log truck drivers must not exceed safe speeds for the load and road conditions they encounter. Always look ahead for changes in road, traffic, and driving conditions.

For more information about log truck safety, FRA offers a 43-page manual, Professional Forest Products Trucking (99-A-3), available for $15 to FRA members, $30 to others. An excellent video-based Defensive Driving and Job-Site Safety training program is available from the North Carolina Forestry Association at 919/834-3943.

Forest Resources Association Inc.
600 Jefferson Plaza, Suite 350, Rockville, Maryland 20852
Phone: (301) 838-9385     Fax: (301) 838-9481