WJXX (Jacksonville, Florida) 01 July 08 Snake Blamed for Sinking Semi in Sisters Creek (Carla Jones) {Excerpt}
Jacksonville, FL: Witnesses say a semi truck driver intentionally swerved his rig off a bridge to avoid hitting a car and a person who were distracted by a snake in the road.
After his truck plunged into Sisters Creek, witnesses say the struggling driver was rescued and revived by a state contractor who happened to be working under the bridge at the time.
The chain of events began Monday at about 7:30 p.m.
The worker who raises and lowers the Sisters Creek Bridge on Heckscher Drive told police she saw a four foot long snake slithering across the bridge, so she left her post and signaled to an approaching driver to stop.
The car stopped. But the driver of the semi truck behind it told police he didn't have time to stop before he would have hit the car and the woman.
So 58-year-old James Gray squealed his brakes and swerved toward the guard rail, witnesses said.
His tractor-trailer smashed through the railing and nose-dived about 30 feet into the water below.
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Managers from Gray's trucking company said his only injuries were a few scratches.
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Snake Blamed for Sinking Semi in Creek