Fatigue and Excessive Speed to Blame in Tracy Morgan Accident
The NTSB has determined that driver fatigue was the main factor in the crash between a Walmart truck and a limo transporting Tracy Morgan, who was seriously injured.
The NTSB has determined that a truck driver’s fatigue caused him to delay braking in a work zone, causing an accident involving a limo van and four other vehicles. The Walmart Transportation LLC driver was also driving at a speed that was over the posted limit for the work zone area.
The day before the crash, the truck driver made an 800-mile overnight drive from Georgia to Delaware and then reported for duty without getting any sleep.
“Hours-of-service rules cannot address what drivers do on their own time,” said NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart. “This driver had been on duty 13 ½ hours of a 14-hour workday, but had been awake more than 28 hours at the time of the crash. Fatigue management programs can help.”
Tracy Morgan, most notably known from the show 30 Rock, was one of the passengers injured in the limo van. The van’s only exit was damaged during the accident, prolonging the time it took for first responders to act.
The NTSB has made recommendations that address issues including requiring driver fatigue management programs, improving work zone safety, recording data from in-vehicle collision warning and avoidance systems, increasing seat belt and proper head restraint use in passenger vehicles, and creating a standard for emergency medical system training and practices for emergency responders.