A one-truck accident in Washington State had some troopers scratching their heads when they examined the scene. At first the accident looked fairly straight-forward, but that was before they saw that the truck’s brakes were tied together using plastic grocery bags.
According to the Washington State Patrol (WSP), the truck was on SR 16 headed onto the northbound I-5 ramp when it rolled over, spilling some of its load of paper towels into the roadway. When WSP troopers arrived, they found the truck blocking both lanes of the ramp and went about clearing the accident.
When taking photos however, they snapped the picture below which was then uploaded by Trooper Brooke Bova onto the WSP District 1’s official twitter account.
Rolled semi fully blocking EB16 to NB I5. Faulty brakes may have played a part in crash. WSDOT enroute to help with detour. pic.twitter.com/fJd4kqKoky
— Trooper Brooke Bova (@wspd1pio) October 18, 2017
Investigators say that it appears that the driver knew he had defective brakes. From the photos it looks like the driver had deliberately used the grocery bags to try and jerry-rig a quick fix.
WSP troopers on the scene issued the driver one citation, but also scheduled a full inspection and say that they expect further citations to be issued to the driver once the full investigation is completed.
Source: local21news, komo, khq, WSPtwitter
If this bag was used to hold the lines together rather than flopping around i don’t see the problem, If he was using the bag to plug a hole, then yeah big mistake he needs to answer for it.
But, the facts should be discovered before making a story out of it. Speculation has destroyed the news media. Report the news with the facts not the gossip and speculation for the ratings.
Agreed.
News is fake when speculation terns into rumor which then turns into (some how) undeniable evidence. But here, the cops are just as guilty of speculating things. They should at least video-record the removal of the bag to show the facts.
300 psi brake lines with no protection from rubbing??
plastic bag to rescue. Doesn’t seem like a leak..even dual tanks
would leak quickly.
Media to the rescue…pure speculation at this point!
pre-trip and truck shop at carrier would preclude this fix if the carrier had any scruples and the driver refused to drive.
DUH!
if he use the bag to tie the line together then he should not been driving until the brakes was fixe properly that’s a major poblem and accident waiting to happen
TOTALLY agree Steve.
Omg, you cannot be serious?
I totally agree and in the pictures you can’t tell what his intentions were with the plastic bags…. he may have been using them in place of zip ties.
He was not using the bags to hold the lines together. There was a hole in the line, and he tied the bag around the hole and secured it with a zip tie. look at the picture, you can see the end of the zip tie.
Curt must work for the NTSB the way he can look at a picture of an accident scene and tell you right then and there what the issue was.
WERE YOU THE MECHANIC AT HIS CARRIER?
if not…don’t speculate.
the media always takes the low road…the driver should most likey have pre-tripped and refused to drive.
a cheap plastic bag and a lot of speculation.
so no matter what…the driver is now criminalized.
Yeah its not like this is factually determined, its just guessing.
Ive used similar methods like using a can of flex to seal air leaks at connectors because the O-rings are failing but I have a couple dozen or more different types of connections for my entire rig, and its a dealer only part most of the time. It works for a while until I get the part.
1 inoperative brake is not an out of service violation. I doubt that is what rolled over that truck. However I’d say there was a dumbass behind the wheel that was a contributing factor.
You’re wrong Daniel. It’s 20% or more for OOS. One defective brake out of ten won’t put you out of service. I know. Been there done that.
To do this to get to a repair shop is one thing but to run like this is beyond stupid😡
You can’t fix stupid
But you can laugh at them.
No, to do this to go anywhere, repair shop or not, is totally stupid. There is no excuse.
Shit……I never thought of that one…….Thanks poor dude whose prob back in Mexico aieady
Wouldn’t be surprised if this driver just hooked up and drove without ever doing a proper vehicle inspection. Have seen it a thousand times, back up and hook and be gone in 1min without even a walk around.
How do you fix a brake line with a plastic bag? The answer is you can’t. It was probably tied like that to keep the lines from wearing due to vibration.
My thoughts exactly! I’m an owner/op with 40 years of mechanic experience. You can’t fix a 120 psi air leak with a wal-mart bag. If you could, then the leak would be small enough the air compressor would keep up with it. Sounds like his load shifted to cause overturn.
Idiot Washington Stater obviously made this remark, and I think that they can read, but common sense is not mandatory for their job requirement.
The bags used the way they were there was only to keep the brake lines from touching, which will get you a ticket n itself. There is no way this contributed to a rollover.
I agree but it doesn’t matter it makes for catchy headlines and that’s what this is all about
Looks like plastic bag vs zip strips.
Never said what brake part was faulty.
Most roll overs are caused by speed inertia with quick steering movements.
Ride a motorcycle the same way and watch the lean into the curve.
Big truck can Not lean, so less side inertia (Speed) keeps top heavy big truck with wheels on pavement.
That’s what I was thinking to
Had nothing to do with the fact that he couldn’t break before the curve. You really weren’t thinking about it where you
Hauling Paper Towels very light Load so this is To Fast For Conditions into the Turn… Brake Job Jerri-Rig was stupid with no Duck Tape…lol…
But should have definitely repaired that… Never mess with brakes and air pressure…
Wish they’d make up their mind if it was rolls of paper or paper towels.
Then again most headline it as the bag holding the “brakes” together and make no mention of it just being the air lines.
Uuuuh. That’s duct tape. Next thing, you’ll be calling it 200 mph (NASCAR) tape. Lordy people, come on!
Anybody who understand air brakes knows that a plastic bag wouldn’t “fix” any type of air leak. He may have use the plastic bag to tie the line to keep it from rubbing on something but that’s about it. The trooper insinuating the guy made his brakes work with a plastic bag is idiotic.
Yea maybe rubbed a hole in the line there looks like it was rubbing together but yea the only way that caused the wreck was if the other 9 was not working
I agree,probably had a low hanging air line, or to keep it from rubbing onto another part of the vehicle in question, the tie strap would have probably been feasable, possibly used the plastic bags 1st then found a zip tie and secured it better, I think from past experience in law enforcement as a traffic investigation officer, speed was the cause,paper towels are light so a top heavy load is not the cause,usually that ramp speed is for cars, a good trained trucker should know not to drive that fast on an on ramp, I now am a trucker of 43 yrs, never had an accident that I was at fault, and I’ve had a few to many speeding tickets on straight forward and believe I’ve made some poor judgements but never on a on ramp. Slow down drivers
NEGATIVE GHOST RIDER…….
The “yellow” speed limit signs are SUGGESTIVE speeds for trucks, not cars. That’s why they are yellow. “Warning to trucks”.
By the way.. I am a traffic Deputy … RIGHT NOW, and I consistently work more crashes in my County than ANYONE ELSE….. in the county.
Agree ..he needed zip ties ..not plastic bags ..this driver is getting a bad rap here .. although it does appear he took the ramp too fast ..but .. c’mon ..the bag is clearly being used to just keep the lines from rubbing or bring ‘frsyed’ .. NOT plugging some type of leak
Plastic zip tie vs. Plastic bag tied….. hmmmmm
I agree it was probably to avoid lines rubbing together. Used what he had to keep it from becoming a problem. And I agree…… broken airline = brakes won’t release…..not won’t work.
That’s right. The trooper was guessing about something he obviously knows nothing about. There is no way even the stupidest person would repair an air leak with plastic bags. Tying the lines up off the road or from rubbing on something I can see if it’s temporary and you head for the shop. The driver was going too fast for the ramp. End of story. But I would be interested to find out what a further inspection turned up.
I was a cop for three years 1976-1979. Everyone “knew” truckers are stupid. Of course none of us had ANY truck driving experience. but we knew it all.
The facts are seldom considered, Anything that reinforces the stereo-type is all that matters. What the politicians consider “optics” in todays parlance.
100% correctly stated.
If you look closer, the plastic is banded with a plastic zip tie — so yes, it does actually appear he was trying to seal a leak.
Yeap plastic bags as zip ties thats all..
Alt311 is right the cop is a moron look at the pic the bag is used to keep 2 hoses together not fix a leak look it up in the book ir would be legal
Some officers don’t take the time to do a proper inspection, they see a possible reason why it could have happened and write it up, if there have been a fatality the scene would have been cordoned off, a more experienced officer with other investigators would have done a more proper investigation. There’s no reason to call the officers in question names,his/her job is to investigate it as they see the problem, we all make mistakes and bad judgement calls, and we all have bad days.Just my thoughts
Get the brake lines fixed… no load until it’s done!! U make us all look stupid, and ashamed !!!! Thanks a lot driver!!!!
Anyone! Who repairs an air leak( temporary or not ) needs to be off the road. If you have the actual mentality to think this could work? Find a different field of work, like maybe a bagger at the grocery store.
Looks to me like the hose with the bag and zip tie around it is the one for the back side of the chamber not the service side and I really don’t believe a plastic bag and zip tie would stop an air leak with 120 psi behind it .
that cop is a moron.. he saw somtf looked ood jumped to conclusion …looks more like a preventative action to keep lines from rubbing or hanging
The bags and zip ties just bundle the lines together to prevent rubbing and damaging the brake lines. This prevented brake failure. It did not cause brake failure.
Not all fixes have to be fancy or pretty over priced rubber parts.
Shame the ignorant trooper posted this on her Twitter page.
Well, unfortunately the public ‘perception’ will be that truckers are idiots afer reading this story. Even if the tying off of the airlines had absolutely zero to do with contributing to the rollover, people will still make the assumption he had the airlines tied together with plastic bags.
Well thank to stupidly design from manufacturing. I am the mechanic last 14 years and i am tired of sh*t everytime i see new crappy truck equiped with emission check in with me. In most of the case truck fail when i saw only 1 wold to said: su*k design, quality of the part is worst than ever. Last week replace 1 entire hub brake for 2015 freightshaker with low milage, cost owner nearly 1k due the spring of the brake falling apart, driver just dont want spending hold weekend at dealer for warranty claimp.
Not to mention all the electrical harness caused engine failure on new freight shaker truck, the harness assembly in mexico and the quality very bad, i would like to say my 7 year old electric toy car built alot better then these 100k dollars truck.
Are you guys complete fools. Bag was just keeping the airlines from rubbing. Looks like a zip tie was put on also. Typical brain dead cop thinking he knows it all. There is no more common sense in this world. The bag didn’t cause the rollover.
The trooper is a idiot if he thinks plastic bags held a air leak. He just probably had there to keep the lines from rubbing together.
You all missed it even if it was used to fix/patch a air leak it is on the park/spring which would mean the brake would be draging or not releasing which could on a turn and wet surface could make trailer slide and/or be hard to control. He would have been better to cage brake and bring to repair shop!
So the driver used a bag to tie the lines together.(i wouldn’t)This didn’t cause the accident.
Going too fast was the problem. scary that the police are that dumb.
The only thing that would fix is to keep them from rubbing against something else back there..
Anyone ever stop and think that the plastic bag may have been on the road and the zip tie happen to be the snag?
Plastic bags used to repair air brakes? Think about it for a while people. Plastic bags won’t seal an air leak. And saying that it MAY have caused the accident??? Speculation!!! Please people, wake up. Don’t judge until you know the facts. There are several rolled over trucks and I wonder how many of those had a plastic bag tied to the air line.
If I couldn’t get a cell signal and was in the middle of nowhere with no one around and limited fuel, Id use a lot of duct tape to get rolling until I had a cell signal to call for repair. Worst comes to worse, I would just use my trailer brake to stop the tractor. Id also drive very slow if I was in the mountains obviously.
Im sure I could make it happen and get by. This story is a highlight of one of those most ignorant drivers that you occasionally see on the road.
Thank you to all of the big companies that hire these types of people since good drivers find you despicable and self serving and wont work for you!
So to all the comments that the cop was stupid, I say you must not have been a mechanic for long! Lol
Without seeing the hose underneath I can’t be certain, but to me it looks like the brake hoses rubbed together, rubbing through one of them, and so the driver wrapped a plastic bag around it to stuff the hole, and then used the zip tie to compress it and seal it.
This is not much different than how plumbers seal pinhole leaks in pipes, except they use more stable devices, and it is a common technique for temporary repairs of hoses in various situations. (back country Jeep repairs to get to help, reducing a leaky hose on an industrial machine until the end of shift, etc.)
It is just stupid to use it on something like this, so I am not endorsing it, but it is perfectly possible to have been an attempt to patch a hole in the brake hose, which could have caused the accident due to loss of air and loss of brakes under heavy application.
LOL, good stuff :>) plastic bags to fix an air leak, LMAO…
Im happy to see so many people on here who are looking at what this probably is instead of taking WSP at their word and joining the mob.
Obviously this trooper isnt very familiar with air brakes. Someone probably did it to keep the lines from rubbing and wearing. But off WSP goes “we expect more citations to be issued”. Lets ruin his life while were at it, im sure hes not in deep enough already.
Dude probably took the turn too fast and rolled it. GL getting another driving job for a while.
That cop is a money generating machine. He just couldn’t help himself and cameto the best conclusion he could.
Many cops are stupid, definitely all cops are liars
1st of all the plastic bag was noticed and only commented as may have caused accident. So it was not definitely determined of what caused accident. 2 Most likely the speed of the driver and possibly being tired played a role in accident. 3 Some carriers want the driver to complete delivery before repair or make driver nurse truck down the road to a repair facility to avoid road repair expense. 4 In any case the driver should always get DOT involved if carrier is pushing a driver to make repairs that he is not qualified to make. 5 companies love new drivers because they are easier to push around. Call DOT before moving truck!!!!
To qualify for your CDL, you need to prove during the test that you have full knowledge of your air brakes. If the shoes are worn out or the pots are garbage, then don’t put that rig on a highway.
I hope the plastic bag was just put on that day, and the only reason it was there was to hold the lines together to keep from having some other safety issue. I would like to start seeing gyro self leveling truck trailers. As a vehicle goes around a curve the weight of the vehicle starts shifting causing the trailer to lean the opposite direction of the turn. The hydraulic electronicly controlled gyros would immediately respond and keep the trailer leveled throughout the turn keeping the weight evenly distributed. Can someone get on that idea.
Did anyone think that Maybe he did not put the bag there it could have been picked up off the road I have seen plastic bags get wrapped around drive shafts or other parts on a truck and tie themselves where you have to use a knife to cut it off. Ask questions first before posting this CRAP
Looks to be two different plastic bags plus two different zip ties definitely would not hold back air if already ruptured been there done that just not with bags and zip ties. If service brake air would hold until brake applied and than would loose air pressure causing the rest of the breaks to Lock Up
Like most of us old salt drivers can say they witnessed. You are out on the road, anytime walking around the truck or fueling, you do a constant visual observation of your equipment. Occasionally you see something that needs tending to, but is not critical or unsafe. You make a road repair or try to improve the fault till you can get to fix the issue. If you will notice, the bag and zip ties in photo were clean and looked as a reasonably fresh repair. I say if that was the case, good job to the driver.
I doubt very little that plastic zap strap over a grocery bag would stop an leak in the brake lines.
If the driver was aware of an air leak that was bad enough to affect his braking power he had other options to slow down his rig to a safe speed to exit the freeway. Remember, the driver is “always” responsible for his equipment: even more so, his brakes.
There is a principle which is a bar against all infomation, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting igornance- that principle is Contempt, Prior to investigation
Learn to SAY, “I Don’t Know”
When Air leaks, Brakes apply. could he drag 1 brake? from low air ? zip ties, bags, shoe lace. I have hung a brake pot with stuff, to avoid further damage and a real problem. Yes cage some brakes to get in can work safe. Only if your the one person doing all the driving and cageing. otherwise SAY “I DON’T KNOW” get the facts & do the right thing. I have no Idea what caused this mans misfortune, other than He rolled over!!
Given a camera,
Probably a few more =(May Have Contributed To Crash) could be found curious if YOU DON’T KNOW. Be SMARTER assume less.
What ever caused the roll over faulty brakes entering the curve to fast and not having the braking power needed to slow down and take the curve at a safe speed
Knowing that you have a faulty brake wouldn’t you gear down and and let the transmission slow you down and most trucks have engine brakes
So I say there was a loose nut behind the wheel that was the cause of the truck rolling over
I am really up in the air over this story. Did the act of tying the brake lines together have anything to do with the faulty brakes: or was it entirely something else that determined the brakes as being faulty?
I have seen airlines being tied together with everything from duct tape to shoe laces to bailing wire. Binding the lines together to prevent them rubbing against each other is to prevent the lines from chaffing is a standard practice.
I have a feeling that either the brake pots were not adjusted properly or the brake shoes were worn out.
The major problem, versus the obvious, was the driver didn’t use, or couldn’t find, a black plastic bag that would have been less obvious to a stupid cop with a camera.