FRANKLIN TWP., Pa. – The driver of a box truck was seriously injured when a large chunk of ice came off a tractor trailer and went through his windshield. It happened on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Franklin Township, Carbon County.
Investigators say the truck driver involved in Wednesday’s accident wasn’t aware it even happened and never stopped.
We spoke with truck drivers at the Allentown Service Area in Upper Macungie about ice removal. While it is a state law, enforcement remains spotty.
We asked truck drivers about what it takes to clear off their big rigs.
“I don’t really know how many people are going to climb up there and risk their own safety,” said trucker Vince Brantley of Delaware.
“Yeah, I mean, we would need a ladder and a long-handled brush to do it and that’s just almost impossible to carry around with you unless you keep it in your trailer and that’s hard to do when you’re loaded,” said truck driver Zach Johnson of Delaware.
“I don’t remove it. I don’t,” said Deion Williams of Detroit. “It’s a safety issue. How can I get up there? How can I come down?”
The danger of falling ice resulted in the tragic death of Christine Lambert in Palmer Township on Christmas Day, 2005.
State Sen. Lisa Boscola sponsored Christine’s Law. Passed in 2022, the law requires the removal of snow and ice within 24 hours. Boscola says it hasn’t been enforced.
“If you don’t don’t clear it off within 24 hours, it just sticks to the top of the car and becomes not just snow, but what I say ‘an icy missile,'” said Boscola.
Boscola is now sponsoring Senate bill 472, which calls for de-icing equipment to be available for free to truck drivers at convenient locations, like truck stops around the state.
“That’s a good idea, for me and for other drivers,” said Williams.
“So I’ve seen them and it would be cool to have them. To avoid the situation like we had earlier,” said Johnson.
The driver of a second vehicle in Wednesday’s incident was taken to St. Luke’s for observation but she’s expected to be okay.
Boscola says her latest bill is still in committee and has not been put up for a vote.
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