worst wreck I have ever seen
 

I was going southbound just as this was happening, I sat for 2 hours and 40 minutes, Lord knows how long northbound was closed

All lanes of Interstate 57 open - all names of victims released - KFVS12 News & Weather Cape Girardeau, Carbondale, Poplar Bluff

Ouch, that sucks.........

Fredog, did you see any reason that a rear end could occur? It looks like flat ground to me.

left lane was closed ahead, vehicles were getting over, I dont know why the first vehicle stopped. maybe he was letting someone in.
what was really bad is that emergency vehicles were trying to come southbound in the emergency lane and a pickup was broke down in it so they had to go across the median which has a big dip, the one firetruck came REAL close to turning over






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There are MANY reasons why this did or could occur! And MOST of them are on "us!" As so-called "professional" drivers, WE are responsible for MUCH of the safety issues on the road.

I know.... most 4-wheelers are IDIOTS... and they MAY stop in a construction zone to let someone in (which they shouldn't DO!) But WE are supposed to "expect" such idiocy! That is our JOB! ESPECIALLY in a construction zone!

Let's see.... if I read this right.... an EMPTY flatbed, with CLEAR vision of the "zone," was following TOO closely (especially with limited braking as we ALL know is a fact when "empty.")

Behind him was some LOCAL asphault driver... probably actually WORKING that particular "zone" who couldn't see over an EMPTY flatbed! :eek1: :confused:

THEN, we have the "class-B" box truck driver, on the phone or eating lunch... not really thinking he's part of the safety issues on the highway!

Followed by the SECOND asphault driver, who can't SEE because of the BOX in front of him.... but.... won't slow down and leave some distance! :pissedoff:

And ALL of this happened because so many of us "professional" drivers won't LIFT off the accelerator and take our time through construction zones! :hellno:

People.... do you WANT to get HOME tonight??? :eek2:

Then, take it upon yourself to BE THE ONE who DRIVES like it!

Look.... I'M as aggressive as the next driver! I like to be IN FRONT and not behind slower trucks OR "civilians!" But.... I'm NOT on the phone! I'm NOT "on vacation." I'm ON THE JOB! :hellno:

And Construction Zones are full of "safety cones" and signs FOR A FRIGGIN REASON! :roll:

There MAY be accidents caused by "civilians" that we are not responsible for. And there MAY be accidents caused by stupid TRUCKERS who can't seem to stay on the road, IN their lane, and OFF the phone!

But, there is NO REASON why an accident should happen in a lower speed limited construction zone... BECAUSE a "professional" driver wasn't DOING HIS JOB! :hellno::pissedoff:

THAT IS WHY THEY POST A REDUCED SPEED!!! :pissedoff:

I'm GLAD no civilians were killed! And I'm SORRY that some truckers WERE! But, dammit.... they DROVE themselves right INTO it! They had a CHOICE! They could have SLOWED down, left some distance... and PAID ATTENTION!!! :hellno:

How many of these stories do we need to READ???

I got an idea.... DRIVE like your LIFE depends on it! Because it just MIGHT! :hellno:

I counted four:

1. An empty flatbed operated by an (ooops . . No idiot here. I relied too heavily on Hobo's faulty analysis.)

2. An asphalt truck operated by an idiot.

3. A 53' dry van being pulled by an idiot.

4. An asphalt truck operated by an idiot.

I see it everyday, many times a day. The lead idiot is much too busy with something besides driving, tailgated by other idiots who have reduced their sensory input exclusively to the actions or, as in this case, the in-actions of the idiots immediately ahead of them. Hobo's probably right; the two asphalt trucks were very likely in their own work zone. Did they miss the signs? Not likely. They just took for granted that the way was clear based on the speed of the truck(s) ahead of them. There are no surprises here, just a tragic and predictable outcome.

Think about the economic impact of the event. The lives, equipment, loads, even the roadway are all lost. How many others lost time and productivity like Fredog? There will be at least seven lawsuits. Suffice to say it's in the millions. Imagine if a tiny percentage of that was instead applied to train and retain competent drivers. Oh no! We can't afford that! The market won't support that!

Hobo, way off on how it went down per the ISP, maybe I mis-read the story but I read that the Flatbed was sitting there stopped in traffic when he got rammed from behind, how is it his fault at all?

The box truck hit the flatbed first followed by 2 asphalt trucks piling in behind the box truck. The flatbed did nothing wrong other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I agree, the flatbed driver WAS paying attention and got stopped without hitting anyone, he was an innocent victim.
the suv driver also shares some responsibility, there was really no reason for him to stop, it was before the road went to one lane

one other thing I would like to correct you on Hobo, dont drive like your life depends on it, drive like MY life depends on it

I feel for the flatbed driver, it happened to me in Kansas City, traffic stopped on the interstate, the Werner truck in front of me stopped suddenly, I was following far enough behind so I was able to stop, I looked in the mirror and saw the truck pulling a reefer coming at full speed, not even slowing down, I had nowhere to go, all I could do was hold on and pray. he hit me so hard, it pushed me forward into Werner, totaled my tanker and did 10,000 worth of damage to the front of my truck, it was only by the grace of God that nobody was hurt.

The SUV does share some responsibility in the whole crash as they stopped for what we can assume was no good reason in a travel lane. It's rare when that vehicle gets in trouble but it has happened before where the police have charged the driver who originally started it all by stopping. It doesn't mean the box truck driver or asphalt truck drivers are free and clear in responsibility if they were following too close and/or not paying attention.

I don't see a box truck. It appears that the reporter misidentified the Waller tractor and trailer, the source of the spilled batteries, as a box truck. That's very clear in almost all the photos. According to the video, it went Waller-asphalt-asphalt and you are correct.