A 23-year-old Punxsutawney man died Thursday morning after the tire on his tractor-trailer blew out on Interstate 80, sending the truck through guardrails and into a bridge pier in Clearfield County's Lawrence Township. The crash shut down the eastbound highway for most of the day and left a nearby overpass in need of inspection.
According to theprogressnews.com, the man was driving a 2017 Peterbilt east near mile marker 116 at approximately 9:30 a.m. when the front driver's-side tire blew out, causing him to lose control of the vehicle. The truck traveled off the left lane, went through the guide rails, crossed into the center median and collided with a cement bridge pier, the outlet reported. He was pronounced dead upon police arrival. State police had not released his name in the report issued Thursday afternoon, per the same account.
The Courier Express confirmed the same sequence of events in its own report on the fatal wreck. The Lawrence Township Fire Department, Clearfield EMS and PennDOT all assisted at the scene, according to the Progress News account.
Highway Shut Down for Hours, Overpass Inspected
WJAC reported the crash happened near the Flegal Road overpass in the eastbound lanes of I-80 around 9:30 a.m. The station said the deadly crash closed I-80 eastbound between exits 111 and 120 for most of the day, and that a PennDOT inspector was sent to assess potential damage to the overpass.
WTAJ offered a different account of the closure's boundaries, reporting that exits 11 and 120 on I-80 were closed but reopened Thursday evening. WTAJ also reported that the bridge carrying Route 1015, known locally as Flegal Road, was damaged in the crash and would be closed for an unknown period of time until repairs could be made.
Emergency Crews Respond to the Scene
WTAJ's reporting identified additional responders beyond those named in the Progress News account, noting that Bigler Boyz, the Lawrence Township Fire Department, Clearfield EMS and PennDOT all assisted state police at the crash scene. The station's coverage, like other outlets reviewed, attributed the crash to the front driver's-side steer tire blowing out and causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
Clearfield County has seen fatal tractor-trailer crashes on I-80 before. WJAC's coverage in April noted the coroner's office was called to a fatal tractor-trailer crash in Bradford Township, a separate incident involving a driver from Illinois. That case remains a distinct comparison point rather than a related event to Thursday's crash.
