PROFESSIONAL TRUCK DRIVER RECEIVES HIGHWAY ANGEL WINGS FOR AIDING FELLOW DRIVER AFTER ROLLOVER ACCIDENT

04/08/2020
Alexandria, Virginia

The Truckload Carriers Association has named Bob Ward, from Columbus, Georgia, a Highway Angel for rendering aid to another truck driver who was seriously injured in a truck rollover.

On November 14, 2019, Ward and his student driver (Anthony Breuil) were westbound on I-40, west of Amarillo, Texas when they saw a truck in the eastbound lane blow a steer tire, cross the median and go across the westbound lanes, and land on its passenger side. Ward and Breuil were able to stop safely, well ahead of the accident. While Breuil put out the safety triangles, Ward, who received emergency medical training in the military, ran to the overturned truck. “The driver was unhurt,” said Ward, “but the co-driver who had been sleeping, was thrown out of the sleeper and into the dash and windshield, sustaining serious injuries.” Another driver stopped at the scene. Turns out he, too, had received emergency medical training while in the military. While Breuil directed traffic to the left lane to bypass the accident, Ward and the other man rendered aid to the injured driver, stabilized him, and got him out of the truck through the windshield. They improvised a backboard using a door from one of the interior cabinets in the sleeper.

Once they got the driver out, Ward cut off the injured man’s jeans and saw that he had a shattered hip and broken leg. Ward could tell he didn’t have circulation to his left foot, so he manipulated the left leg to restore circulation. “He was in bad shape and at the point of going into shock,” shared Ward. “Being 40 miles outside of Amarillo, it took the ambulance over forty-five minutes to arrive.”

Ward has been driving since 1986. “This isn’t the first accident where I’ve stopped to help,” he shared with TCA. “A lot of people are afraid to render aid because of getting sued, but there are Good Samaritan laws that protect you when you’re doing your best to help. I believe it’s what you should do.

Editor’s note: At the time of this incident Ward was employed by CFI in Joplin, Missouri. Ward now drives for Anderson Trucking in St. Cloud, Minnesota. He says Breuil now has his CDL.

For his willingness to assist his fellow drivers, TCA has presented Mr. Ward with a certificate, patch, lapel pin, and truck decals. His employer has also received a certificate acknowledging their driver as a Highway Angel. Since the program’s inception in August 1997, more than 1,250 professional truck drivers have been recognized as Highway Angels for the exemplary kindness, courtesy, and courage they have displayed while on the job. EpicVue sponsors TCA’s Highway Angel program.