Upsides and downsides of driving tankers?

My company did. As much as they could. One item we had was really cool and that is a gel blanket. If you're burned you apply the blanket right to the burn area and head off to the hospital. We also had fun when we all got together like when the rack shut down and we'd go over some of the regs in both the FMCSR's and CFR 49 178 to 199. It makes you feel a whole lot better know the company takes the extra steps for your safety. They provide the tools and instructors and it was left to us to learn.

 

No one has mentioned this, so I thought I should .....just because you work as a chem tank driver, doesn't mean you will be hauling the nasties all of the time. I've been running tanks for Liquid Cargo for the past six months, and haven't been in the sitch that required a suit once. I'm a local/regional driver in the northeast. Chem tanker drivers also run asphalt, gypsum wax, emulsions, etc....yes the placards pay more....but you may not haul the death loads all of the time.

 

I can say this. I ran a tanker for for the company I'm presently with until our account got real slow and I was only getting 2 loads per day. I waited it out as long as I could and then had to leave. I went back to vans, but the mechanic supervisor at that company gave me a screwing over and I left (rather abruptly). I called my old company and they took me back but didn't have a tank position available, so they put me in a tri-axle dump. I hate it. I miss the tank work so much that I'm ready to look for a new job again.

 

It's been several years since I saw the presentation and I recall the pickup running and cutoff sleeves but I don't recall management knowing bout problems . I remember Morecraft didn't shut off a a valve that he was supposed to to stop product flow .

 

It's been so long I have trouble remember all the events also. I know his truck was the source of ignition and he was filling in for another worker for that shift. He was going down to the shore ( I assume NJ ) for a vacation with his family but he had to send them ahead and he was going to meet up later. They did meet up later but it was at the hospital. It's a very good story for what we do and kicks us in the butt about complicity when we do need reminders all the time.

 

I've seen several eye opening videos . One was by a driver that was following a car that had a young boy in the back seat smiling and waving at hit . The car had to slam on the brakes for something and he rearended it killing the boy .
Another showed a teenager girl that had her face badly disfigured when her car caught fire after being hit by a drunk driver .
Drivers need to see the grief caused by unsafe driving .

 

Indian River.

 

That's one way to look at it and I've seen some of those movies but not at my gasoline company. The safety department there felt that blood movies could be an issue because the drivers might start thinking about those wrecks and get so consumed their attention might be directed in areas other than paying attention to driving. With all the cameras and monitoring of the driver there has to be a fine line drawn where you can put too much pressure on a driver and back off and let them do the job. We chose to go the Smith System way for driving safety. If you keep on top of that program I do not feel there's a better system for defensive driving.

 

I know of an immediate fill in NJ....long haul driver, not a big company....you need to know your stuff...no room for bs....what is ur experience level?

 

paramount petroleum (aka alon) also kern oil and big west (aka flying j)