A semi truck went flipping over a guardrail in New Jersey on Tuesday after an apparent road rage encounter with a motorist.
The accident occurred on August 28th in Mahwah, New Jersey.
According to Mahwah police Chief James N. Batelli, the incident started when a motorist in an SUV saw a tractor trailer driving along northbound Route 17 in a manner he deemed “aggressive” and “reckless,” and so he “decided to take the matter in his own hands and slow the tractor-trailer down to prevent any type of accident,” explained Batelli.
The motorist then cut in front of the trucker and hit his brakes, straddling the lanes and causing the trucker to begin losing control of his rig. The motorist then changes lanes back across the highway but the trucker is unable to gain control and went veering into the concrete divider, sending the truck flipping into the northbound lanes.
Luckily, no one was seriously injured in the accident, but the 36-year-old unnamed truck driver was issued a summons for careless driving, failure to maintain lanes, failure to signal, and delaying traffic. The 44-year-old motorist was also issued citations for reckless driving, failure to maintain lanes, failure to signal, and delaying traffic.
“In this latest incident the proper approach would have been for the driver of the SUV to have dialed 9-1-1 and report the tractor to law enforcement,” explained Batelli.
“What starts out as a motor vehicle violation can easily escalate in a very dangerous situation with the potential of very serious, if not dangerous outcome,” added Lieutenant Scott Cherven.