COARSEGOLD — At approximately 3:45 p.m. today, calls came into 911 of a rollover crash with a truck on fire at the south end of Deadwood at Cavin Lane.
A 43-year-old driver from Fresno was southbound on Highway 41 at the bottom of Deadwood where the double lanes merge. He was approaching a line of cars stopped for a southbound vehicle waiting for traffic to clear, to turn left onto Cavin Lane.
Photo by Gina Clugston
The truck driver locked up his brakes, smoking all of his tires, according to witnesses, but the truck rotated out of control and crossed the northbound lane where it slammed into a large boulder, flew into the air and overturned on its roof in the ditch.
A northbound Ford Expedition, in an attempt to avoid a head-on collision, swerved across the southbound lane and into a driveway, where it came to a stop. The female driver of the Expedition and her passenger, both of Coarsegold, were uninjured.
Passersby stopped and assisted the driver get out of the wrecked truck. The Volvo roll-off dumpster truck was a total loss, however, the driver escaped with only minor injuries.
Witnesses reported a small flare-up of flames that burned out on its own.
Sierra Ambulance personnel evaluated the driver at the scene and he declined to be transported for further medical attention.
Cal Fire reported that 25 gallons of hydraulic fluid had spilled as a result of the accident and Caltrans was called to the scene.
As traffic slowed, a secondary accident occurred just north, near Road 420. No injuries were reported in that collision.
The accidents remain under investigation. Highway 41 remained open as the scene was investigated.
