A malfunctioning traffic light forced a truck driver to make an impossible decision early Tuesday morning – crash into a line of stopped vehicles or swerve into another lane of traffic.
The accident occurred on Tuesday, November 24th at around 7 a.m. in Escambia County, Florida.
The Florida Highway Patrol reports that the 67-year-old truck driver was driving a log truck south on Highway 29 approaching the Highway 97 intersection when the traffic light at the intersection malfunctioned and began blinking yellow. The blinking yellow light caused multiple cars to stop, but the truck driver was unable to stop in time, leaving the truck driver with only a split second to make the decision: crash into a line of cars or swerve into another lane of traffic.
The truck driver quickly swerved into the right turn lane to avoid striking the line of vehicles, causing the log truck to overturn and crash into the back of another car.
The truck driver sustained serious injuries in the crash, but the occupants of the car suffered only minor injuries.
The current condition of the truck driver is not known.
Southbound Highway 29 was shut down for several hours as crews worked to clear the wreckage and remove the logs from the scene. Traffic was temporarily detoured onto Highway 97 for the duration of the cleanup, but all roadways have since been reopened.
