[UPDATE 10:10 a.m.] Big Rig Smashed Through Guardrail North of Hooker Creek on Hwy 101

A little before 6 a.m., a semi truck smashed through the guardrail on the northbound lane of Hwy 101 north of the southernmost entrance to the Avenue of the Giants. The northbound lanes are currently closed. The northbound traffic has been diverted into one of the southbound lanes.

Note: Information updated from the CHP Traffic Incident Information Page.

UPDATE 10:10 a.m.: Photos from Cal Trans:

Cal trans

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Taurus Ballzhof
Guest
Taurus Ballzhof
6 years ago

Please report all dangerously operating rigs to 911. These machines are risking everybody’s safety every day …

Why???
Guest
Why???
6 years ago

You’re kidding me right? You know how many of these dumb ass people are hauling ass in their cars tailgating these trucks and not giving them enough room on these roads. [edit]

So tired of this garbage
Guest
So tired of this garbage
6 years ago
Reply to  Why???

Well, the speed limit for 3 or more axel trucks is 55mph. When you see a big rig going 55…..well, you never have and are unlikely to, unless they are going up a long grade. They do more damage to roads and are deadly to car passengers in wrecks…they would do less damage and be much safer if they simply OBEYED THE LAW

Antichrist
Guest
Antichrist
6 years ago

They also pay almost 3 times as much as passener vehicals in taxes through fuel and tag fees. They are also a critical part of the system that allows people to eat buy items on line while skipping sales tax, etc. Testing and physical requirments have never been high for new truck drivers. However i have yet to see one passenger rig on the 101 between fortuna and benbow that is not traveling at least 75 mph with califorina plates. And the ones slower then that tend to stay in the left lane causing other drivers to drive recklessly to pass on the right to avoid traveling behind a big rig. The interstates and hwys were build to support commerance. In the last 40 years or so passenger vehicials have become more relyable with traction controls abs fuel injection power steering etc. Allowing marginal drivers to drive faster then their skills would have allowed with out such tech. Trucks take a bit to gain speed, and since most trucks today have their mpg strickly monitored it is not unreasonable to have them gaining speed piror to climbing a hill. Or to prevent passenger vehicials from attenpting to pass in a dangerous manor that would place the truck and driver at risk as physics deem that 105k lbs of cargo plus rig weight etc requires longer stopping distances. I cant tell you the number of truck drivers i personally know who are typicially the first to find a wreck and call for help while climbing through mangled mess of twisted metal trying to make sure that family on a road trip will make it , because they thought they could drive through the night , or that drunk who thought shit i am good no cops around and pass out drive off the road. Truckers are a good group of folks who often go out of their way to help steanded folks on passes etc. And attempting to say they are all bad or reckless is very narrow minded

baffled
Guest
baffled
6 years ago
Reply to  Antichrist

Not one passenger rig going below 75??? I always go between 60 and 65. Please watch your own generalizations.

Antichrist
Guest
Antichrist
6 years ago
Reply to  baffled

Well then ever think that maybe somehow i never saw you driving ?

Shel
Guest
Shel
6 years ago

Please report ALL reckless/speeding drivers, drunk drivers, stoned drivers, angry drivers by dialing 911! Be aware of mile markers, vehicle makes/ model and color and occupants so you can make an intelligent call that may make a difference.

Living in paradise
Guest
Living in paradise
6 years ago

They take the curves too quickly! Gotta make the money!

Thinking allowed
Guest
Thinking allowed
6 years ago

I doubt as if any long haul trucker is getting rich. More like struggling to get the bills paid. Maybe we all should be willing to pay more for our goods if the people who provide them get respect for what they do.

Diesel DRW - Curb Weight 7762 lbs
Guest
Diesel DRW - Curb Weight 7762 lbs
6 years ago

Most of what they haul is unnecessary anyway, and then they all think they have to speed! Drive those things 55, no more. If you go fast or weave we will call the CHP!

I for one am tired of wrecked rigs all over the North State! Crash your rig, lose your license!

Bushytails
Guest
Bushytails
6 years ago

Yes, because obviously it was caused by speeding, despite having absolutely no information to that effect available.

A better long-term solution is fast, reliable, safe train service. Too bad a bunch of people would rather see more vehicle accidents instead.

anny
Guest
anny
6 years ago
Reply to  Bushytails

Train service would be great. Unfortunately, the terrain it needs to traverse and “fast, reliable and safe” are mutually exclusive.

Janet
Guest
Janet
6 years ago
Reply to  anny

That’s not actually true. Have you seen the train tunnels in Italy? They go through terrain equally as rough as ours. But it’s very expensive and Americans are tied to their cars and don’t want to spend the money.

local observer
Guest
local observer
6 years ago
Reply to  Janet

much different geology. a train is never coming to the northcoast, ever.

Shel
Guest
Shel
6 years ago
Reply to  local observer

Trains use to be in this area. Due to the lunk heads in CA political systems (aka government) we may not get one soon but they will return especially if people keep pushing for it! Look at bullet commuter train they are currently working on. Where there is a will, there is a way, even if you have bureaucracy ….

Hubertus
Guest
Hubertus
6 years ago

Not the truckers, the companies that hire them. My Dad was a trucker for years – if you don’t think they get pressured by higher-ups to reduce hauling time to increase profits, you’re nuts.

Twisty
Guest
Twisty
6 years ago

So tell me why they can’t drive on areas which are reasonably flat instead of particularly twisty, or narrow? If Richardson Grove is such a bottleneck, why aren’t the accidents all there? Seems like the big rig guys are driving safely where it’s obviously scary, and then cutting loose on the “non-scary” parts and having accidents. I get that they’re not making a ton of money; but accidents take more money than driving in a straight line, so it might be a good idea for truckers to figure out not to go over 55 mph like the law says for all vehicles towing and have LESS accidents as a result.

Also they need to think about the future. Self-driving trucks are going to be the #1 goal for the self-driving crowd because there’s so much money for the kiddie programmers to make whilst robbing uncle and grandpa of his livelihood. Perhaps time to get into another business before you’re forced into another one.

And BTW, don’t waste money on a truck driving school course – even at CR, the job won’t exist in 10 years.

Loy
Guest
Loy
6 years ago
Reply to  Twisty

That is where you are wrong .trucking and transporting dry goods and general freight will be around alot longer [edit] the problem is no one who is a good and decent driver. Cant eek out a living up here . we make 20 percent less per hour than drivers in the bay area . we are subjected to morons like you who have no idea what it takes to safely and effectively drive up here you see a loaded truck and all you can think about is getting in front of it so it wont slow you down then you jam on your brakes so you wont miss your exit.

Diesel DRW - Curb Weight 7762 lbs
Guest
Diesel DRW - Curb Weight 7762 lbs
6 years ago
Reply to  Loy

Trucks ain’t going to go away! Richardson Grove wrecks last year, about a dozen, one of which I watched happen. Truck drivers need a cop escort, but only about 99% of the time. Most of them drive very poorly, and quite aggressively. See if you can avoid being killed by a rig today! See you out on the 101!

Overnight Driver
Guest
Overnight Driver
6 years ago
Reply to  Twisty

I’m not afraid of the threat of self driving trucks. I can think of a thousand scenarios where self drivers will fail. Especially around here. It’s going to be hilarious watching those trucks choke on a problem and have no option but to stop in their tracks… Ghost truck just sitting in the roadway because it can’t figure out some road hazard, or Construction zone, or detour, or…

spankie
Guest
spankie
6 years ago

Poor man he wasn’t going off the road on purpose!
Most likely a “medical episode”.

Diesel DRW - Curb Weight 7762 lbs
Guest
Diesel DRW - Curb Weight 7762 lbs
6 years ago
Reply to  spankie

Most likely he was texting his honey, ordering something on Amazon, arranging for a tryst with a Eureka sex worker, or smoking some “local product”… Why truckers think they are special is beyond me, most of them are farmworkers who got a few bucks from mommie and took a truck driving course, in Espanol. Now they are risking YOUR safety, driving crazy all over NoCal, and crashing their rigs. What does a trucker have to do to get fired? Kill somebody. Whose fault is it? Someone else’s, something else’s. Mechanical failure. Not my fault, I was bringing an important trailer full of pure shit for YOU, you ungrateful wretch!

Antichrist
Guest
Antichrist
6 years ago

Hey if you want to meet me in town i can buy you a mydol and a hot water bottle , god knows it would be worth it to have you feeling better

Gazoo
Guest
Gazoo
6 years ago

Can we get a number of big rig accidents in Humco?

I know it’s way to often

fuckwalterwhite.com
Guest
fuckwalterwhite.com
6 years ago
Reply to  Gazoo

Maybe “shel” knows. Seems to know everything else about trucking…

Eldon G. Whitehead
Guest
Eldon G. Whitehead
6 years ago

My comment to all of the previous comments posted prior. All of you people are Nuts. I have a lot of Family members who drives these rigs and ones like them and they are probably more safe than you idiots are with your own cars. Read the facts, why has there been more car type accidents in Humboldt County lately than Big Rigs. And for the ones who says they would call the CHP if they saw a Big Rig driving over the speed limit, than will you give me the year, model, color and license plate number of your vehicle so that I can call CHP if I see you driving more than 65 or the legal limit. Get a brain and quit picking on the ones who is trying to make a living. I do have Law Enforcement locked into my cell phone, so, it’s easy to call ahead for them to catch up with you.

Haytruck91
Guest
Haytruck91
6 years ago

Thank you! Was wanting to go off on a rant here! But your comment brought me back to some normalcy…
my family is full of commercial drivers, including myself. A lot of close call I’ve had were because of someone in a car being stupid or totally oblivious to what was going on around them…
Until you know the facts … don’t jump to conclusions.

Joy L
Guest
Joy L
6 years ago

If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say the driver probably fell asleep. I would much rather drive on our roads with a trucker than with a lot of other folks out there. And the majority I see in our neck of the woods are NOT speeding.

Overnight Driver
Guest
Overnight Driver
6 years ago
Reply to  Joy L

I’m sure you are right. Easy spot to get drowsy, especially that time of morning. TONS of deer out lately too.

Antichrist
Guest
Antichrist
6 years ago
Reply to  Joy L

Ever think that someone might have cut the driver off causing him to have to react in a sudden manor that he made the judgement call to put it in thw ditch verse having to live with that fact that he killed someone ? Truckers routinely make calls like that, but people just jump all into the koolaid thinking it is cherry flavored , and often end up with the sour look on their faces when they discover it is lemon lime.

G-MAS
Guest
G-MAS
6 years ago

Nobody is paid enough for the jobs they do. My step dad drove long line out of New Jersey,drove for Engle van lines all over the United States,never wrecked,got a fine,never over weight,always took their sleep,logged everything. He obeyed every law,knew every law in all states. He loved his job,wasn’t great pay.took care of 6 kids thou.He always said “somebody has to do it,might as well be me” so please , not all truckers drive the same🚚🚛⛟

Gone Loggin’
Guest
Gone Loggin’
6 years ago
Reply to  G-MAS

Every law in every state?? Hahaha they change daily… Also up to the officers discretion on most of them… To the guy or lady saying they call chp for going over 55, I’ve Been told by D.O.T. Officers that WE CAN cruise 60 mph just like they let you class C assholes drive 70… Do you call CHP when you see a motor home pulling a car going over 55? Doubt it…. hoe about the guys pulling their 5th wheel trailer doing 70 down the road? Call the CHP then? Highly unlikely… Get a life

Empty Legend
Guest
Empty Legend
6 years ago
Reply to  G-MAS

G-MAS- Really? Engel Van Lines? Out of New Jersey? I knew that company when Charles Engel ran it into the ground. My Dad worked for them too. Small world. Wished I could meet you outside of this blog and have a small talk about that. Anyways- I agree with your comment and raise you one. Truck drivers are the backbone of this country. They aren’t getting rich. They are mostly all just decent, hard-working people doing a necessary job to put food on the table of families they don’t get to see that much. I can’t believe I’m reading anti-trucker stuff on here! I’m guessing that you folks just don’t know any good truckers? I hitch-hiked across this country a dozen times and I tell ya- They are the angels of the highways, looking out and picking up the broken pieces for no extra pay but just because that’s their road! Y’all are griping in the wrong direction.

Shel
Guest
Shel
6 years ago
Reply to  Empty Legend

The problem is that most of the ‘down on truckers’ crowd doesn’t have a clue to what it takes, what is actually going on. They are regurgitating the same old cry baby mantras that they have been exposed to instead of getting an education about particular situations! Give the driver of this accident a break! I hope he is ok! No one knows what happened yet so lets show a little mercy and compassion! Want to chew on something then get your brain out: Percentage of idiot passenger car accidents vs big rig truck … who causes the most accidents? who has the most accidents? who causes the most traffic fatalities? I would guess the answer would be in the blame of the regular ol’ passenger car/pickup . So to all you angry blatters that are down on truckers, get off! If you have driven truck, if you have never sped, never drove recklessly, never been in an accident then maybe you have room to run your mouth. Until, take ten and count your blessings that we have truck drivers that bring us provisions and others goods to this county!

Love2All
Guest
Love2All
6 years ago

So glad he’s okay…💖

Crime stopper
Guest
Crime stopper
6 years ago

I hope the driver is okay. Perhaps a long haul and insufficient sleep caused him/her to doze off and drive off the highway. Very fortunate no one else was a victim. Also thought there might have been a load shift inside a trailer? Stay safe everyone

Humboldt Lady
Guest
Humboldt Lady
6 years ago

Blessings to the driver. Not knowing what happened, he possibly needs to be commended for not involving other vehicles. But I don’t know. Just all the negative comments are disturbing. As a society we want so badly to point the finger and say it’s their fault. We aren’t satisfied with it was “an accident”. We want more. Unless you have never been in an accident that wasn’t your fault, then you might not get where I am coming from. Shit happens. People have medical issues. Animals cause accidents too.
Please drive safe, the roads are going to be wet tonight.
Peace…

Traveller
Guest
Traveller
6 years ago

Was that a double trailer? I thought the doubles weren’t allowed on this part of 101…
Threading the needle through Richardson Grove was supposed to be an issue, but maybe the rules have changed in the past decade. Corporate Greed and all that.

Sh*t happens
Guest
Sh*t happens
6 years ago
Reply to  Traveller

All the comments on corporate greed and making more money being responsible for every unfortunate incident seems lost when you stop and look at our own culture. Mom and Pop grows are larger than years ago…to make more money; mega grows…to make more money; we lie about the purpose of growing the plant…to make more money. Face it the truth is everyone wants more money, even the homeless pan handling want more money. Corporate greed is no different than community greed, it is all about which spin you want to put on it and who is telling the story. It is the nature of human society, and it is only going to get worst.

Dave Kirby
Guest
Dave Kirby
6 years ago
Reply to  Traveller

Its not about doubles in the grove it’s about the length of the trailers. Axle to axle distance.

Hick
Guest
6 years ago

More likely a sleep issue than a medical one. Truckers are always struggling to stay awake. It’s a difficult and dangerous job.

Been there
Guest
6 years ago

Coulda blown a tire, coulda had the load shift, coulda broken a spring, coulda hit a deer, coulda had a stoned, drunken growdozer run him off the road, coulda, woulda, shoulda stayed home……

Is the driver okay!?!?!????!
Guest
Is the driver okay!?!?!????!
6 years ago

Does anyone know how the driver is doing?

Jeannemartinsousa
Guest
Jeannemartinsousa
6 years ago

Does anyone know the name of the driver? Two of my friends drive for this company.

Guest
Guest
Guest
6 years ago

It ain’t the miles that’ll get you, it’s all those curves and in-betweens!

HDD
Guest
HDD
6 years ago

For those of you who don’t know the reality of what being a Truck driver is I would like to share somr of what I know about it. First my grandfather and father were drivers, and I drove for several years myself. Its not as kick back as some might think. Unfortunately there are the few idiots and newbies out there, but believe me they won’t be there long. We are for the most part Professional Drivers. We are very well aware of the kind of devastating damage our rig can do and do everything with in our power to avoid any kind of wreck, fender bender, or infraction of the law. Oh and there are literally 1000s of them that we must be aware of!
Not only do we get marks against us if we are caught braking any laws while in our trucks. We get marks against our driving record if we break the law in our personal vehicle. If we get to many marks we loose our license to drive tuck. Back when I was driving it was 3 points and you were out.
On top of keeping our truck, trailer, and load legal and secure, We have to also watch for all of you other drivers out there. Most don’t understand the first thing about the mechanics of a Simi. How many of you keep 2 car lengths between you and the car in front? Not many of you I’m sure. We do not have an option. We must leave enough room to safely stop because not one of us want to kill someone and our rig well kill you if we hit you. However I guaranty some idiot is going to jump right in front of our truck requiring use to slow down more pissing more of you off.
Now heaven forbid we are on any kind of grade. Even an empty truck is heavy and it take more time to move all that mass back up to speed. To compensate for this we will make a “run ” at the grade to keep that mass moving forward. That’s when you will see a Truck grabbing speed. Unless some A-hole won’t move out of our way.
Then there is my personal favorite driver that humps my trailer so close that I have no line of sight on him. I’m told that they think they can save gas by doing this. It’s DANGEROUS people! Stop that shit. If you can’t see the side mirrors that driver can’t see you..
Accidents do happen to the best of us. However a lot of them could be avoided by everyone on the road using a little common sense and a bit of basic courtesy

Shel
Guest
Shel
6 years ago
Reply to  HDD

if I may add a few more my daddy taught me (a truck driver, God bless his soul!), you kind of touched on it : don’t sit there next to the truck on the highway w/multi lanes! get up and around quickly! If you can’t see that driver’s face in his side mirror, the driver may not be able to see you either! You got on ramps and off ramps, give them room! Don’t be passing then especially if you can’t see what is on the ramp. Its not going to hurt you to delay passing for those few moments and will make everyone safer. Pretend there is an idiot on every ramp that is going to try to force that truck over. Its a little kindness and safety thoughtfulness that makes their job just a tiny bit easier.

fuckwalterwhite.com
Guest
fuckwalterwhite.com
6 years ago

For those of you who don’t see Reddaway drivers daily….
These guys are on their cellphones through town like teenage girls.

Shel
Guest
Shel
6 years ago

and why do you think they are on their phones? wouldn’t be that some dispatcher gave them the wrong address or no one was there to receive? maybe they have to pick up another palletthat wasn’t on their board?
Are you following them around timing how long they are on their phones? pulling them over demanding to know who and what they were speaking? You don’t have any idea about what is happening so why are you making this comment … or is your comment based on part of the crowd of “let’s bash those no good truckers cause WE are all so perfect and superior” and thereby feeling the need to make such a comment?

Dont Roll and drive
Guest
Dont Roll and drive
6 years ago

you don’t roll one while driving , do that before you get in man