Trucker loses control of rig after ‘sneezing fit’
COLEBROOKDALE » Part of Route 73 in Colebrookdale is shut down after a tractor-trailer left the road and got stuck in an embankment.
The accident was reported at around 8:40 a.m. Tuesday when police say the driver of the truck suffered a “sneezing fit” and left the road along the 1200 block of West Philadelphia Avenue. The truck came to a rest right side up in an embankment just off the road between a guard rail and a tree, neither of which the truck hit, police said.
Additionally, police said that although the tank of the truck was empty, there was some fuel spillage after the truck’s gas tank broke.
Authorities said fuel spilled close to a stream nearby and that Mt. Penn Emergency Management was on the scene to address the issue. Lewis Environmental was also expected to arrive on the scene.
The driver of the truck, who has not been identified by police, was taken by ambulance to Pottstown Hospital for treatment. He suffered a laceration to his head, police said.
As of 11 a.m. Tuesday, crews from Berks-Mont Towing were still working on removing the truck from the embankment.
Colebrookdale Police said they could not give an estimate for when the area of Route 73 could be reopened but stated that it is currently being detoured onto Ironstone Drive.
Assisting Colebrookdale Police on the scene were Boyertown Area Fire & Rescue, Borough of Mt. Penn Emergency Management and Berks-Mont Towing and Recovery.