Weigh station chain-reaction crash leaves one truck driver in serious condition

A truck driver was airlifted to the hospital on Tuesday following a crash involving multiple semi trucks in line at a weigh station. 

The accident happened at around 11 a.m. in Catawba County, North Carolina. 

According to the Statesville Record & Landmark, a line of tractor trailers was stopped outside of a full weigh station on the eastbound side of Interstate 40 when a semi truck driven by Christopher Cornelison slammed into the back of a flatbed semi truck stopped in the line of traffic. The force of the impact then pushed the flatbed into a third semi truck, which crashed into a fourth rig. 

The chain-reaction crash left Cornelison trapped inside of his wrecked rig, and crews worked to extricate him before loading him only a helicopter to be airlifted to a nearby hospital. 

None of the other truck drivers sustained more than minor injuries in the incident. 

The crash shut down both east and westbound lanes of I-40 for around three hours, and one other wreck involving semi trucks was reported, possibly as a result of the traffic caused by the initial wreck. 

The lanes have since been reopened. No further information on the injured driver’s condition have been released.