Tractor-trailer hangs over side of Florida bridge; driver rescued

A tractor-trailer dangles from the overpass on Florida's Turnpike at the Beeline Highway intersection Saturday morning. The driver was rescued and was able to escape injury.

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue units work to secure a tractor-trailer Saturday morning that was hanging over the bridge above the Beeline Highway on Florida's Turnpike.

Florida’s Turnpike was the scene of two major accidents Saturday that shut down a portion of the highway in Palm Beach County for much of the day.

Early in the morning, a tractor-trailer driver was rescued from his cabin as the truck dangled over the side of a turnpike bridge at Beeline Highway. The driver was able to walk away without injuries.

And then early in the afternoon, Palm Beach County Fire Rescue units were again dispatched to respond to a crash involving five vehicles traveling northbound near milepost 104, about five miles north of the Okeechobee Boulevard exit.

One was a pickup truck hauling cars on a trailer. It collided with a passenger car. One person, extricated from his car, was flown to a trauma center, fire rescue officials said. Two other injured people were taken to the hospital by ground transport. The extent of their injuries were not known Saturday afternoon.

In the morning crash, a northbound truck driver hauling scrap metal lost control of his rig at about 8:15 a.m., leading his truck to hit the side of the overpass at Beeline Highway, fire rescue officials said.

Fire Rescue units found the cabin of the tractor-trailer hanging over the edge of the bridge, with the cab suspended in the air. Weather may have played a role as it was raining at the time of the 8:15 a.m. crash, Fire Rescue spokesman Tom Reyes said.

Special Operations units secured the vehicle. They were able to safely remove the driver by 9:06 a.m., about 45 minutes after they arrived on the scene. The driver was taken to a trauma center as a precaution but Reyes said the man, whose identity was not disclosed, appeared to be fine. He was able to walk from the bucket of the ladder truck to a waiting stretcher. No other vehicle was involved in the crash.

Reyes noted that there were two other minor crashes on the southbound side of the turnpike, attributed to people driving distracted and taking cellphone videos of the incident. Northbound lanes of the turnpike were closed for several hours.

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