Truckers, do you have a ‘buddy plan?’ If not, this might convince you.
A recent Facebook post provides truckers with potentially life-saving advice about building a safety network while you’re out on the road.
On Thursday, Deb LaBree of the nonprofit organization Women In Trucking took to Facebook to write a message about the importance of having a “buddy plan” in case of an emergency while you’re out on the road.
LaBree writes:
Folks do you have a buddy plan? Someone you check in with couple times of day! Today, a driver died in his truck. Company could not get hold of him and had the police do a welfare check. Unfortunately the doors were locked and police couldn’t get inside. Finally my husband and another driver called the carrier for permission to break the window. Instead, the carrier sent a locksmith. This all took a lot of time. If the driver needed help, the wait time was too long. Have a plan. Have a spare key somewhere where law enforcement can get to you faster, maybe saving a life. This is what I woke up to this morning. Carrier was checking on him because he didn’t show up to deliver his load… don’t let the only ones looking out for you be the carrier. Have a plan. RIP Driver.
Several Facebook users chimed in to agree with Labree or offer their own advice.
“Agreed! Me and my brother call each other 3-5 times a day, we always let each other know where we stop for the night and call as soon as we wake up in the morning. we drive for different companies. It’s always good to have someone that knows where you are and especially if you’ve been feeling under the weather,” said one commenter.
“It’s maybe already been said but every evening (we parked most nights) I would text friends and family… 3 or four of them…our location. Just a quick short text with the city, state and truck stop we were at. That way they heard something from us each night and then also the knew where we were last. I also had them on my tracking app so that they see where we were at any given time,” another commenter said.
The Missing Truck Driver Alert Network also shared a list of information for drivers to give to family members to have on hand in case they are unable to get in contact. This information includes:
- Name, age, identifying scars or tattoos, a physical description, a list of health conditions.
- Company name and phone numbers
- Make, model, color, and unit number of truck
- And damage to/markings on trailer
- Style of trailer (flatbed, reefer, etc.)
- Plate numbers for truck and trailer
- DOT, VIN, & MC numbers.
- Pickup and delivery locations
- Photos of the driver and truck