E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSS
NBC Washington
A serious crash on the I-495 Beltway, early Wednesday.
Seven people, including four firefighters, were seriously hurt in a major crash that all but blocked the Beltway early Wednesday outside Washington, D.C.
A fire truck was responding to an accident on southbound I-495/I-95 at about 3 a.m. ET when it was struck by another vehicle, said Corporal Clinton Copeland of the Prince George’s County Police Department in Maryland.
“This is going to be a major, major problem for drivers this morning,” he said, adding that only one lane on either side of the scene was open to traffic as at 5:30 a.m. ET.
The fire truck was left on its side following the crash, according to a picture taken by a passerby and shared on Twitter by NBC4's Melissa Mollet.
A tractor trailer and an SUV were the other vehicles involved in the crash, NBCWashington.com reported.
It said the tractor trailer rear-ended the fire truck, citing Prince George’s County Fire Chief Marc Bashoor.
The accident involving the fire truck happened on the inner loop of the Beltway near the eastbound exit for the John Hanson Highway.
Leave a Comment:
How do you rear end an emergency vehicle with it's sirens on and lights flashing?!
I can see a 17 yr old kid that got their license but a highly experienced truck driver with thousands of miles under his belt?
I mean, an emergency vehicle with the lights flashing catches my eye a mile away and this guy "drives" right into it hard enough to flip it onto it's side. "AND" in the dark which enhances the flashing lights. WTF?!
Pay attention people, pay attention!!
They were on the Beltway. The truck driver probably pulled in right behind the fire truck to make some time.
Or fell asleep. It happens all the time.
"If it can happen, it will"
Trucker probably was falling asleep--3 a.m. Or maybe was reaching for his cell phone to read a text message. Guess the investigation will uncover the facts.
You would be surprised how many people 'ignore' or 'don't see or hear' fire trucks and ambulances with their lights and sirens going. I have driven both, and had people 'not see' me.
I spent have of my career driving pumpers and had many people 'not see me' but never ever from behind!
I am confused to this wether the engine was actually driving forward or if it had to slow down for some reason...as to why an 18 wheeler rammed their @ss so hard as to upend it like that photo showed.
Either way...that truck driver just will NOT be able to come up with a valid reason for not seeing the lights of that truck. (the siren would have been useless since they are focused forward and the trucker probably would not have heard those)
I just hope the brothers are all going to be ok.
PROBABLY fell asleep....it was 3 am......
How do you run into the rear of a Fire Truck which I would assume is speeding to the accident???? Did the truck driver fall asleepor did the Fire Truck cut off the truck driver? I know on the beltway if you are not going at least 65 the drivers will ride your ass and then cuss at you when they pass by doing about 80 to 90. Hell we even have elected officials being clocked on the beltway in Government vehicles going over 100 miles per hour. They treat this road like the Daytona 500 speedway.We will have to wait for the crash report on this one. Either way I hope everyone involved is ok. The local news here in DC stated one of the firefighters was taken to a nearby hospital which treats folks for limb issues:( I hope this fire fighter was not too seriously injured.
When is it possible to actually do 100 on the DC beltway? Certainly not in the daytime when government officals would be out.
Did you forgt about PG Counsil Memeber Karen Toles who was charged with illegal lane change which caused the officer to chase her for MILES down the beltway just to catch up with her, in a Government Vehicle at that? She stated she was speeding because she was late for an appointment!!!!!
Anyone who has ever driven on the Beltway can't be surprised by this.
From what I have read in the papers this morning, the fire truck had already responded to an accident and was returning to the station. Don't know any further details, but it should be interesting to find out what actually happened. It was a real mess out there this morning. Took me 1 hour 20 minutes to drive 20 miles. Hope the firefighter makes it OK. I don't see how anyone lived through the wreck.
That is one ugly and frightening photo, isn't it? Brought out an "OOH!" when I first saw it. Best wishes for the injured.
a tractor trailer at 3am on the beltway or the expressway is scarey....you never know how long he/she has been at the wheel and what he might be taking to stay awake.personally have been on it at 1am and there was only one other car for miles...liked that..
Bottom line: people around here do NOT know how to drive! I've been driving the I-95 corridor for 23 years back and forth to work. All I can say is a whole bunch of people around here need to get off the road and stay off the road! If you drive in the rain with your brakes on and two footbal fields in front of you, you need to get off the road! If you think you own the left lane, oyu need to get off the road! If you like to play games with other drives, you definitely need to get off the road! If you can't drive when a snlowflake falls out of the sky and the road is dry, you shouldn't even have left your house! If you are sitting on the interstate at a dead stop trying to get over to the HOV off ramp, you will probably die some day doing the same STUPID thing! If you are sitting at a stand still texting, you should be slapped across the head with a mack truck! Again, IF YOU CAN'T DRIVE, STAY OFF THE ROAD!
And angry drivers should also get off the road. "Get out of my way" attitude?
Wayne -
Are you one of those people who "draft?" Does one-and-one-half car lengths just scream "LANE CHANGE!" to you?
Why don't we wait until there are additional details before we comment further. Hopefully everyone involved will make a speedy recovery.
I-95 in Florida--a rough road to hold---better move over for the big rigs---or else--now that Obama gave the go ahead for Mexican truckers to come into the U.S. roads--That is a sad fact
I have driven in all 50 states, the carribean, South America. There are bad and agressive drivers everywhere.
Folks, I live and breath I-495 around Washington, DC every day. In a nutshell it's dog eat dog and every driver for him/herself. However, when you see ANY kind of flashing light, you should at least slow down to find out what is going on. More than not, those around you will slow down as well. I pray for all involved this morning. The only saving grace for me this morning was that I was going south from my exit. Traffic going north was backed up three exits south of me, which is about nine exits from the accident scene.