News Story #5

Runaway Truck

Power was knocked out in El Cerrito and some neighboring cities, including Berkeley and Richmond yesterday. When a 10-wheel asphalt hauler truck overturned and smashed against a resident’s home. In the wake of the trucks destruction, there were five badly damaged vehicles and a snapped power pole.

A Honda sedan hit by the truck was so crumpled that the driver was trapped inside. Rescue workers sliced into it, peeling back the roof to free the trapped driver. A electrician’s truck that had been parked on Moeser was knocked over to the next street, Richmond. A sport utility vehicle that apparently had a man and boy inside ended up stuck in some shrubbery beside the burning house.

A witness, Ruben Sharma, lives across the street from the single-story home that was destroyed in the fire. He was just about to head back to work around 1:30 when the crash occurred. He said, “First, I thought it was a major earthquake. This is unbelievable.” His front yard is littered with bricks, broken glass, car parts, splintered wood and palm fronds.

El Cerrito police Detective Sgt. Shawn Maples, who was among the first to appear to the scene, heard cries coming from the burning truck and house, and started digging through the debris. He spotted the driver lodged between the wheels of the truck, which had flipped on its side. Maples said the driver’s legs were mangled and he couldn’t move. Maples was able to grab his hand and, with some help form Police Chief Scott Kirkland and Detective Ken Zinc, he was able to pull the driver to safety. Maples said, “We dragged him out in a heartbeat while the truck went up in flames. I just wanted to get him out of there.”

The driver of the disastrous event, a San Jose man whose name was not released, broke both of his legs in the crash. He’s listed in serious but stable condition at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.