Sedan vehicle broke down on Dumbarton Bridge and came to complete stop. Suddenly the big rig was approaching them very fast and hit them sedan from behind. Occupants of the stalled vehicle jumped out right on time before truck rear ended their vehicle. Due to the intensity of the crash both vehicle caught fire and were engulfed in flames. Surprisingly none was injured in this, as it seems to be almost fatal Hayward Car accident.
San Mateo Daily Journal reported that this accident occurred around 11.00am
CHP stated that the four door sedan had some sort of mechanical problem while traveling on a bridge at unknown speed. The driver was a resident of Palo Alto in her 60s and she also had her daughter with her in a vehicle. Both were able to escape from a vehicle before a rig crashed into the rear of the sedan.
About 100 gallons of diesel fuel spilled during the crash were the cause of major fire. One of the tires caught a fire during collision and that was the major cause of fire. The truck driver tried to use his fire extinguisher and put out the fire but was unsuccessful. The truck was hauling wood pellets and plastic totes, which burned like kindling in the blaze.
Menlo Park Fire Fighters were fighting this dangerous fire hazard for about 45 minutes. They run out of water and Fremont Fire Department came to a rescue to finish what the Menlo Park Fire Department has started. The truck driver suffered minor injuries and was taken to the hospital as a precaution, Howard said. Neither of the occupants of the sedan was hurt, but the accident could easily have been fatal.
“We were extremely lucky and fortunate that no one was hurt,” Crawford said. “That was due to the quick thinking on the part of the occupants of the passenger vehicle. They were able to hop out of the vehicle before it was struck and made it to the pedestrian walkway on the side of the concrete jersey wall.”
