The Walmart Stores Inc. driver whose truck crashed into a limousine carrying actor Tracy Morgan was in the 14th hour of a work shift that began the day before, which is within allowable limits, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
The NTSB’s preliminary report cites – using electronic log data – that the driver in this incident was operating within the current hours-of-service limits, a fact ignored by groups seeking to erroneously tie this crash to the suspension of the unjustified restrictions on the use of the 34-hour restart, said Sean McNally, vice president of public affairs for American Trucking Associations. The restrictions on the restart raise crash risk and until those risks and other unintended impacts are studied, they should be suspended.
The crash demolished a limousine van carrying actor and comedian Morgan. The van spun and flipped over, killing one of the passengers, comedian James McNair, 62. Morgan, 45, and two others were critically injured. Six other vehicles carrying 16 people were involved in the subsequent impacts, although none of them were hospitalized.
