Concrete truck overturns in Warden
Jan. 3—WARDEN — A large concrete boom truck skidded and overturned on S. County Road just in front of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Warden at around 8:15 a.m. Tuesday, according to Warden Police Chief Rick Martin.
No one was injured in the accident, Martin said, though the driver was pinned in his cab as a result of the accident and had to be rescued by a firefighter with Grant County Fire District 4.
Martin said the concrete pumping truck owned by Hauser, Idaho-based Champion Concrete Pumping, was headed from the Tri-Cities through Warden to the new school construction site in Almira when the driver took his foot off the gas when reaching the top of a hill into Warden. As a result, the back wheels kept moving, prompting the truck to spin 180 degrees before hitting the curb and flipping over.
"The roads were extremely slick this morning," Martin said.
The driver was taken to Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake, Martin said.
The truck is a large concrete pumping truck frequently used to pour large foundations, Martin said. Because of the vehicle's size and weight, the police chief said a special truck was dispatched from Spokane to help lift it, leaving it on its side for much of the day. Nearby overhead power lines prevented he use of a large crane to life the truck, Martin explained.
"Agrifix came out with two large rigs (to lift it), but they need another from Spokane," he said. "It's difficult to lift."
Martin said despite the accident, very little hazardous material, such as motor fuel or engine coolant, leaked.
"It took a chunk out of the concrete, though," he said.
Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at cfeatherstone@columbiabasinherald.com.
