A Maple Ridge man is searching for answers after a bizarre incident happened while he was driving.
Jim Ross was driving his SUV on March 27 on 132 Avenue near Fern Crescent.
He was heading eastbound and a dump truck was heading westbound.
“The box was up and it caught the overhead wires,” Ross said. “And I knew immediately it was going to flip it. And the driver was fighting with it, trying to stay in his lane because it was pulling him into my lane, and he was fighting to stay in his lane. It magnified the effect of the wire and flipped it right on top of me.”
Ross said the two vehicles were “windshield to windshield” and the drivers could see each other after the dump truck’s cab landed on his SUV.
“If it would have been two more feet, it would have been on my roof,” he said. “So it was as close as I ever want to come.”
Ross’ dashcam captured the incident on video, which he shared with Global News.
Despite the possibility of being electrocuted due to live wires on the road, Ross said the dump truck driver kicked out his windshield and got out safely.
When a witness opened Ross’ passenger door safely, that’s when he was able to get out of his car. Ross said despite the loss of his vehicle, he knows how lucky he was to walk away.
“I thought, ‘Well, this is how it ends’,” he said. “This is it. So, I’ve been around heavy equipment my whole life, and, I figured this is it. This is the final.”
According to Ross, the dump truck driver did not remain at the scene but he waited there for BC Hydro, police, fire and ambulance.
“First I thought I was going to get crushed,” he said. “Secondly, I thought I was going to get electrocuted.”
Ross said others should use his example of paying attention to the road at all times, with no distractions.
“By paying attention, it’s saved my life,” he said.
As of June 1, all dump-style vehicles with boxes capable of rising above 4.15 metres must have an in-cab warning device to alert drivers that the dump box is raised.
Ross did not want to divulge the name of the trucking company as he didn’t want to lay any blame but said he hoped this could be a learning experience.
He said he knows accidents do happen but he wanted to tell his story about how fast things can change and how a moment of distraction could potentially be catastrophic.
In a statement to Global News, the Commercial Vehicle and Safety Enforcement branch of the Ministry of Transportation said it was not informed about this incident or the carrier involved and as such, no tickets have been issued or enforcement taken.
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