Injuries Reported in Baltimore, MD Truck Accident in Fort McHenry Tunnel
Baltimore, MD -- May 24, 2022, injuries were reported after three commercial trucks crashed in the Fort McHenry Tunnel in Baltimore.
Authorities say the incident happened around 1:20 p.m. inside the tunnel under Baltimore Harbor. Preliminary investigation suggests only that a vacuum truck reportedly crashed inside the tunnel and became wedged between a car carrier and a tractor-trailer. The circumstances of the accident are still under investigation.
The vacuum truck driver was trapped inside their vehicle. Once extricated, they were taken to an area hospital for treatment of critical injuries. The other two truck drivers were able to exit under their own power and received non-life-threatening injuries.
No further information is currently available.
Commentary on Truck Accident in Fort McHenry Tunnel in Baltimore
Just about any crash can make chaos on the roadway, but the difficulty of figuring out what happened increases exponentially when multiple commercial vehicles collide. Seeing as how someone was seriously injured here, I hope law enforcement is up to the task of connecting all the dots of the wreck in the tunnel.
I don't mean to insult the hard (and often thankless) work police do. People may just not realize that traffic investigations don't always receive much of a local department's limited resources. Because of that many crash scenes, even complex ones, are quickly examined before a "best guess" is recorded and the file is closed. Unless someone looks again for clearer answers, that guess essentially becomes the final word on the matter even if critical details might have been overlooked or evidence was lost. That can be problematic when trying to help victims and their families in the aftermath of these incidents.
To be clear, I'm not saying police will mishandle this investigation--nor am I saying one way or the other what exactly happened in the tunnel. The triggering crash might have been caused by something as common as driver distraction or speeding, but it's possible something less ordinary like poor road conditions or a vehicular failure was behind it. It's even quite possible that a combination of factors are to blame. Every possibility must be considered in pursuit of the whole truth, and a careful investigation is always necessary to ensure vital clues aren't overlooked.
That brings me back to my original concern about law enforcement: Unfortunately police can't or don't always get to all the complexities of a crash like this. They may be reassigned before the job is truly done, or they may not have the needed training or tools to get to the heart of the matter. That's why I often advise working with independent experts who have what they need to make sure every important bit of data is found. Such an investigation may find a simple explanation, but only after the job's done right can anyone know for sure. When all the facts are in, any further steps can then be considered.
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