Surveillance camera footage shows the horrifying moment a moving train collided with a stopped tractor trailer at a level crossing in Pulaski County, Kentucky this past Friday.
Making the situation even worse: the semi-truck was loaded with charcoal lighter fluid.
The resulting fireball could be seen for miles, according to officials with the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office.
“We had multiple fires, multiple explosions,” Chief Doug Baker, with Somerset-Pulaski Special Response, told WKYT News in Kentucky. “When I arrived on scene, there was fire probably 75 to 100 yards down both sides of the tracks and 35 to 40 feet in the air.”
But most incredibly of all – the man driving the tractor trailer survived the fiery crash.
According to investigators, 27-year-old Viktor Kalchenia missed a turn and was attempt to correct his course, looking to the rear of his trailer instead of watching the tracks.
Watching the footage, it seems incredible that anyone could survive such a collision, one which authorities say caused extensive burn damage to the train’s engine.
WKYT reports Kalchenia is recovering in the hospital after undergoing a surgery. He is listed in stable condition in the trauma ICU of UK Hospital.
Kalchenia’s family did not want to go on camera, but say Kalchenia is married and has kids. Authorities say he’s from Auburn, Washington.
-With files from WKYT-TV
Comments