A dump truck crashed into the water and trapped driver in the Florida Keys, police say
A 63-year-old Hialeah man was critically injured Thursday after the dump truck he was driving blew a tire on U.S. 1 in the Middle Keys, police said.
The truck went through a guardrail, flipped over and landed in the water, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The 9 a.m. crash at mile marker 61.5 left the driver trapped in the vehicle, but unclear for how long.
“Someone jumped right in to help him,” said Lt. Kathleen McKinney, an FHP spokeswoman. “They were holding his head while trying to extricate him.”
The driver, who was not identified by the Florida Highway Patrol, was taken to Fisherman’s Hospital in Marathon and then airlifted to Jackson South Medical Center in Kendall, according to FHP.
The 2001 Kenworth T800 truck was headed south on U.S. 1 and had just crossed the Toms Harbor Cut Bridge when the front right tire blew out, according to the FHP crash report.
“That’s when he lost control,” McKinney said, adding that the truck was loaded with boulders.
The blowout sent the truck veering to the right. It went through the guardrail and overturned as it went down the embankment and came to a stop in the water.
The crash happened between the Hawks Cay Resort on Duck Key and Conch Key.
At about 12:40 p.m., the sheriff’s office reported that traffic was alternating so crews could remove the truck from the water and take it away from the scene. Earlier, about 9:30 a.m. , the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office reported a full roadblock due to the crash.
FHP is investigating.
