Collision
On March 1, at about 12:15 p.m., Louisville first responders hurried to the site of a disaster on the Clark Memorial Bridge, which crosses over the Ohio River. First responder were summoned to the scene when a semi-truck crashed through the bridge’s guardrail barrier and was left dangling over the water with its frantic driver stuck inside. Now, newly revealed dashcam footage from the Clark Memorial Bridge collision illustrates how truly traumatic the incident was. Specially for the driver inside the truck, who was left dangling over the Ohio River.
Furthermore, Sydney Thomas, 26, is the driver trapped inside the semi-truck. Thomas was left hanging 100 feet above the Ohio River for nearly 45 minutes before someone came to assist her. In fact, footage and witnesses at the Clark Memorial Bridge express how Thomas was desperately calling for help. Moreover, as was previously stated, Louisville firefighters responded to the scene at the Clark Memorial bridge. This rescue team put their own lives in danger to perform a daring rescue of Thomas. The squad had one crew member repel from the side of the bridge, making his way down to the truck’s cab. After reaching the cab he was able to successfully pulled Thomas out and lifted her to safety.
Dashcam Footage
Additionally, the vehicle crashed occurred between a regular pickup truck and the semi-truck. This was after the pickup truck drove out of its lane to avoid a stalled out electric vehicle. Unfortunately, when the vehicle swerved it collided with Thomas semi-truck driving it out of control and into the Clark Memorial Bridge guardrail barrier.
Also, the new air dashcam footage shared online clearly shows the moment the other vehicle impacted Thomas and what transpired inside the truck during those split seconds. In the video released by the Jefferson County Kentucky Attorney’s Office, the truck driver can be seen driving across the bridge in split images. The top image depicts the truck driver, while the bottom image depicts what is in front of the truck. The sound of screeching wheels can be heard when the pickup vehicle swerves into the northbound lane and collides with the semi-truck head on. In the video, we can also clearly see the driver being jerked around inside the truck and panic. On top of that her failed attempts to maneuver and regain control of her 18-wheeler headed towards the side of the Clark Memorial bridge.
Endangerment Charges
Trevor W. Branham, 33, was arrested in late March in connection with the investigation and is believed to be the primary cause of the Clark Memorial Bridge collision that lead a semi-truck to dangle off a bridge. He was charged with four charges of wanton endangerment and one count of driving with a suspended license. During the court proceedings, Branham pled not guilty to the four counts of wanton endangerment and one count of driving with a suspended license. His case was ultimately presented to a Louisville grand jury, and was freed from going to jail in March on a $20,000 partially secured bond.
In addition, during the trial, Branham’s counsel attempted to establish that it was simply a car accident. After stating that the police overreacted due to the media coverage. However, witnesses reported that Branham’s Chevrolet C1500 truck was speeding and weaving in the southbound lanes. Eventually, leading to the collision with the stalled vehicle in the right lane. Police determined that Branham’s vehicle lost control and drove into northbound lanes, colliding with another automobile with two individuals inside. Seconds later crashing into Thomas semi-truck.
The video shown in court Wednesday appeared to reflect witness statements, showing a pickup truck swerving to avoid the stalled vehicle before colliding with the semi, which then struck the Clark Memorial bridge support beam on the west side of the bridge before passing through the iron fence railing.
Ultimate Consequences
Despite Branham escaping from jail and finding a means to return to society. Branham is now in a wheelchair as a result of the crash’s force, which broke multiple bones. There is no mention on how long he will be in a wheelchair or whether his condition is chronic. However, hopefully he was able to learn from the repercussions and prevent an accident like this from happening again.
Also, it was stated that Thomas did not suffer any kind of physical injuries to her body from going over the Clark Memorial bridge. Overall, this was a very scary and frightening situation. For this reasons, it is critical to constantly drive cautiously and be aware of one’s surroundings while driving.
Written by Nohemi Sanchez
Sources
TMZ: KENTUCKY ACCIDENT Dashcam Gets Inside POV… SEMI-TRUCK DANGLING ON BRIDGE
Fox News: Dramatic video shows harrowing moment truck crashes on bridge in Louisville, Kentucky, left dangling of edge
WDRB.com: Dashcam video shows chain reaction crash that left semitruck dangling from 2nd Street Bridge
Featured Image Courtesy of Admitter Flickr Page – Creative Common License
First Inset Image Courtesy of Don Sniegowski Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Second Inset Image Courtesy of keso s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
