Flatbedder gets fatally smushed by his steel load at a stop light in NJ.

How about something a whole lot simpler? Properly secure the load to begin with and nothing else is necessary.

 

another hamburger situation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkugujCO1K4

 

All this talk of "ratings" is really not applicable to this situation. The driver could have had 10 chains and 10 straps on this load and still suffered the exact same end result, especially if not done properly and re-tightened as needed. Only a well-constructed wooden bulkhead would have blunted the load shift to perhaps prevent this tragedy. Wood bulkheads (properly constructed) can stop massive shifts but are only practical for non-over-length loads.

Again, a quality aluminum headache rack would have diffused the impact but it's hard to say if one would have prevented penetration of the cab of at least some of the material. That would all depend on the speed of the stop and the forward energy acquired by the steel before reaching the BOC, which would have depended on the amount of containment provided by the securement.

 

Taking short cuts by using only straps cost the driver his life..... When I pulled a flatbed, I was pulling a load of tubing using chains and straps as securement, a women cut across three lanes of traffic to exit and I had to slam on my brakes. Every strap was sliced like butter, luckily the chains held.

 

If the chains held, then how did your straps fail?

 

or maybe this fatal idiot missed the 2012 post

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...ng-forum/166020-4x4-bulk-head-how-to-plz.html

 

Looks to me most drivers have never heard of a dead man chain!!!

 

R.I.P Driver

As I told my husband once. " Just because I can tie my horse up with a braided piece of yarn and he doesn't run away, does not mean he can't."

 

here in Ukraine all tint and flatbed trailers have steel bulkheads. the only flatbed w/o bulkhead allowed here is vehicle mover, but it got barriers.

So IMO, I'd ban all flatbeds w/o bulkhead in USA

It is fantastic, becouse if lumber falls down from truck it skids on pavement and it may do bad things on oncoming lane only.
In west Ukraine there are many log trucks on road and I saw some accidents. if load falls on oncoming trafic - really bad crash, but not like in this movie