Truck Driver Rescued From Vehicle Suspended Over The Ohio River
on Mar 02, 2024
Footage from Louisville, Kentucky, captures the dramatic rescue of a Sysco truck driver after her vehicle crashed through a guardrail on the Clark Memorial Bridge, leaving it hanging over the Ohio River.
Emergency responders conducted a tense rescue operation, working to save the driver who remained trapped inside the dangling semi-truck. Fortunately, officials confirmed the driver emerged unharmed.
Video footage captured firefighters lowering one of their own down to the truck’s cab. With his help, they successfully extracted the driver and lifted both to safety.
Utilizing ropes and specialized equipment, the Louisville Fire Department swiftly rescued the driver in just 45 minutes.
Fire Chief Brian O’Neill expressed, “She held it together like a champ, But I will say, the second she hit solid ground she was able to let those emotions go and just have that relief. It’s a pretty impressive thing.”
Thank you to @KYTC engineers for working around the clock to inspect the Clark Memorial Bridge after today’s accident. Your commitment to keeping our bridges, roads and people safe is amazing. Louisville is grateful. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/8OhMLfgYs1
— Mayor Craig Greenberg (@LouisvilleMayor) March 2, 2024
Firefighter Bryce Carden revealed, “We’ve certainly done some crazy things, but this tops it so far.”
On behalf of the City of Louisville, I want to give a huge thanks to firefighter Bryce Carden and the other first responders who rushed to the scene today and bravely rescued the truck driver on the Clark Memorial Bridge. She is alive thanks to your heroic efforts. pic.twitter.com/32df5oqe6k
— Mayor Craig Greenberg (@LouisvilleMayor) March 1, 2024
The crash also involved two other vehicles, with one individual from those vehicles requiring hospitalization.
Louisville’s Mayor Craig Greenberg stated that the crash happened when a southbound vehicle collided with a stalled car. This collision caused the vehicle to cross into northbound traffic, where it struck the tractor-trailer, sending it through the guardrail and over the edge of the bridge.
Right after the crash, reported around noon on Friday (March 1), authorities closed off the bridge.
Following thorough assessments and inspections conducted by engineers on Saturday morning, the bridge is set to reopen tonight.
Mayor Greenberg took to X to announce the news, stating, “Great news. The Clark Memorial Bridge will reopen for vehicular traffic by 6 p.m. tonight. Thanks to our incredible partners at @KYTC for their swift response and for making safety the priority. Please note, pedestrian walkways on both sides will be closed until further notice.”
It’s a relief to know the driver made it out safely. Watch the terrifying video below.
