Ask a Trucker

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

that whole story sucks!

[Teacher Mark 53]

that whole story sucks!

I'm glad they caught it because it could have ended like this:

Shelbyville, IN - Officers in Shelbyville are mourning the loss of one of their own.

Sergeant Gary Henderson, a 51-year-old Shelbyville police officer and 29-year veteran, was killed when he was struck by truck tires as he was assisting in a traffic stop along Interstate 74.

The officer was assisting Shelby County Sheriff's deputies in a traffic stop on an I-74 entrance ramp about 20 miles southeast of Indianapolis about 11:30 Wednesday night. Sheriff's deputies say a set of rear dual tires and wheels came off a passing semi and struck the officer.

"Two juveniles had stolen a car. Gary had [gone] up to photograph the vehicle. At that time the rear wheels became dislodged from the semi, killing him instantaneously," said Bill Elliott, Shelbyville chief of police. "The way things happened; the chance was one in a million."

According to the police chief, the semi had changed lanes and was starting to slow down when the wheels came loose. The driver, a trucker from Berwyn, Illinois who was headed from Kentucky to Chicago, did not realize that his wheels had become dislodged. He is cooperating with police.

As the dawn broke in Shelbyville residents awoke to find flags in the city at half-staff. Flowers where the accident took place were put there by a man who at the time said he didn't even know who had lost his life there.

"This is a small community and we know our everyday heroes are our police officers and firefighters and losing one is like losing a brother," said Scott Spahr.

Chief Elliott added that the accident happened when Sergeant Henderson only had 20 minutes left on his shift.

Sergeant Henderson was married with one son, who serves on Shelbyville's reserve police force. It is the first time an officer has been killed in the line of duty on the Shelbyville police force. Sergeant Henderson's squad car, now adorned in black, sits unoccupied in front of the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center. Friends and even some family members stopped by to see the tribute, read the cards and mourn.

Chief Elliott told Eyewitness News that an autopsy was conducted in Cincinnati and Sergeant Henderson's body was escorted back to Shelbyville.

The two suspects in the car were taken to the Johnson County Juvenile Detention Facility. They are described as young teenagers.

Terri Kuhn stopped by to get information about her 13-year-old son who she says was one of the two juveniles in the allegedly stolen car.

"That makes me feel real guilty inside to know there is a family now at a loss because of two children who have no idea what they have caused. No idea," she said.

Sergeant Henderson was a Shelbyville High School graduate. Chief Elliott called him a "good father," and said that dealing with the loss would be a "long process."

Shelbyville is a town mired in mourning and for some mired in guilt that will soon give way to questions about how two juveniles escaped 30-day emergency care and how two wheels would come off a semi truck, all adding up to the loss of one life.

Viewing for Sergeant Henderson will take place from 2-8 p.m. Sunday at the Shelbyville High School auditorium.

The funeral service is also at the high school. It takes place Monday at 11:00 a.m. Burial will follow at the Forest Hills cemetery in Shelbyville.

This story has been compiled from reports by Cat Andersen and Kevin Rader

http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=7198084

I was on the scene of this fatality 10 days prior to my Canada experience. The driver of the rig wasn't charged. He was said to be devastated. Mechanical failure was cited as the reason for the wheels separating. It seems like that would have been fresh in my mind, but it's very easy to get in a hurry and miss something. I really did inspect the lugs, but it was only a visual inspection. I sure as he!! check them now. The company I'm with now doesn't screw around though. If there's something wrong they don't argue with the driver. All you will hear is "Get it fixed A.S.A.P.". That's not the case with carriers like Gainey, who incidentally is in bankruptcy protection now.

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

i thought truckers frequently checked their nuts.

[Teacher Mark 53]

i thought truckers frequently checked their nuts.

I used to. My Wife has them in Vietnam now, so I have to ask her.

[Ban Hammer 13,656]

i thought truckers frequently checked their nuts.

I used to. My Wife has them in Vietnam now, so I have to ask her.

just hope she don't take a wrench to them

[웃 910]

How many times have you jackknifed?

Did you hear about this from the summer of 2007?

PAW PAW -- The Michigan State Police Paw Paw Post and Van Buren County Central Dispatch began receiving strange reports of a man in a wheelchair being pushed by a semi truck on Wednesday afternoon. As the truck was leaving a gas station, the 21-year-old man wheeled his chair in front the vehicle and the wheelchair became lodged by its handles in the front grill of the truck. The unwitting truck driver then proceeded to travel west on Red Arrow Highway at speeds of approximately 50 mph. Police initially thought the report might have been a prank until they started receiving more reports of the situation. The truck traveled for an estimated four miles unknowingly pushing the man in the wheelchair. The driver then pulled into the Ralph Moyle Trucking Company with wheelchair and occupant still attached. When troopers arrived, they discovered the man was unharmed and unfazed by the incident. Police approached the driver and advised him of the man in the wheelchair. The driver did not believe them until he stepped out of the truck and saw the man still sitting in the chair. The young man said it was quite a ride.

[Teacher Mark 53]

I never jack knifed (Thank God).

O.K., I've retired from the Trucking Industry. I traded in the ole' rig for one of these:

Got any questions for an English Teacher living in Vietnam?

[NickD 203]

Fun driving my class A motorhome, can see truckers eye to eye, we are at the same eye level. Expeditions, Suburbans, and Yukons look like toys on the road. But I never tried driving it during one of our winter storms, in a car, can't see more than twenty feet ahead, these guys are going over 50. Really don't know if their visibility is better or if they are crazy. Will have to try that sometime. We do have the same head lamps.

[Fandango 1,440]

Truckers should stay outta the fast lane. Can't tell you how many times I've been on a two-lane highway and both lanes have a truck in it, and there's no way to pass em.

[Krikit 1,165]

How many times have you jackknifed?

Did you hear about this from the summer of 2007?

PAW PAW -- The Michigan State Police Paw Paw Post and Van Buren County Central Dispatch began receiving strange reports of a man in a wheelchair being pushed by a semi truck on Wednesday afternoon. As the truck was leaving a gas station, the 21-year-old man wheeled his chair in front the vehicle and the wheelchair became lodged by its handles in the front grill of the truck. The unwitting truck driver then proceeded to travel west on Red Arrow Highway at speeds of approximately 50 mph. Police initially thought the report might have been a prank until they started receiving more reports of the situation. The truck traveled for an estimated four miles unknowingly pushing the man in the wheelchair. The driver then pulled into the Ralph Moyle Trucking Company with wheelchair and occupant still attached. When troopers arrived, they discovered the man was unharmed and unfazed by the incident. Police approached the driver and advised him of the man in the wheelchair. The driver did not believe them until he stepped out of the truck and saw the man still sitting in the chair. The young man said it was quite a ride.

OMG. I haven't been back to this thread in months. That story was hilarious.

I'm glad they reduced your fine, Mark. You did an excellent job on your defense. I do know why the fines are so steep, though, and why they take it seriously. For a while, there, Canada was having a terrible rash of truck wheels coming off and killing people. It was truly crazy. I'm glad their approach to solving the problem is working.

How are you keeping, Mark? You're looking good.

[Teacher Mark 53]

I'm doing much better than I ever was driving, that's for sure.

I remember when I posted this. I was with Movin' Out, the Billy Joel musical. Three days in Brampton, Ontario at The Rose Theatre. It seems like a lifetime ago.

How you doin'?

[almaty 19]

Truckers should stay outta the fast lane. Can't tell you how many times I've been on a two-lane highway and both lanes have a truck in it, and there's no way to pass em.

spot on..the pokey bastards..jam up rush hour daily

[Krikit 1,165]

I'm doing much better than I ever was driving, that's for sure.

I remember when I posted this. I was with Movin' Out, the Billy Joel musical. Three days in Brampton, Ontario at The Rose Theatre. It seems like a lifetime ago.

How you doin'?

Good to hear, Mark. Any plans for returning stateside? I'm doing well, thanks.

[Immigrant2009 0]

Ever had a question you were just dying to ask a driver, but were afraid you might die if you asked them? Well nows your chance to ask without risk to body or olfactory glands! Who's first?

Why are they so slow ?

[Teacher Mark 53]

I'm doing much better than I ever was driving, that's for sure.

I remember when I posted this. I was with Movin' Out, the Billy Joel musical. Three days in Brampton, Ontario at The Rose Theatre. It seems like a lifetime ago.

How you doin'?

Good to hear, Mark. Any plans for returning stateside? I'm doing well, thanks.

I plan on visiting in June to see family. If it wasn't for them I wouldn't return any time soon.