Trooper Delays End of Shift to Track Down Vehicle That Fled the Scene

By Lt. T. D. Coley, Commercial Vehicle Division, Washington State Patrol

On Nov. 11, 2020, at around 3 p.m., Washington State Patrol Commercial Vehicle Division Tpr. Gordon Gruendell was making his way toward his residence in Clark County when he heard a call of a collision go out over the air. A commercial motor vehicle was at fault and fleeing the scene toward his direction. Rather than disregard the call, as his duty hours were coming to a close, Tpr. Gruendell engaged and gathered information from communications about the color of the cab and type of trailer.

He also learned that a passenger car traveling in the opposite direction of the truck was struck by a winch that had flown off the trailer and through the front and rear windshields, nearly striking the two front seat occupants.

Tpr. Gruendell was able to locate and stop a tractor and flatbed trailer matching the description given by the occupants of the passenger car and within a reasonable time and distance from the collision scene to have been involved. Upon further inspection, Tpr. Gruendell was able to locate a driver’s side rail that was deteriorated to the point that a winch would have likely slid off. Tpr. Gruendell focused his efforts on the left side of the trailer, as that was most likely to be the source of an object striking something in the oncoming lane. Another trooper ferried the winch found in the car up to Tpr. Gruendell and he confirmed it matched those on the trailer. At the conclusion of the Level I Inspection, Tpr. Gruendell located a large crack in the air brake chambers of the trailer, placing it out of service.

Tpr. Gruendell did not stop there, however. He contacted the company directly and was able to obtain a photo of the trailer taken in 2020, because one of the company drivers took a picture of every load he hauled. This photo clearly showed the trailer had six winches on each side. Tpr. Gruendell reviewed pictures he took the day of the collision which showed five winches per side. He also conducted another inspection of the truck and trailer the next day at a repair facility. Based on these inspections, Tpr. Gruendell was able to match up black paint from an overspray on the trailer and the winch.

Thanks to Tpr. Gruendell’s efforts, the occupants of the passenger vehicle received some closure to a collision that easily could have resulted in very serious injury or even death, and a dangerous vehicle was taken off the roads. One relatively small mechanical failure like this illustrates the value of rigorous and thorough equipment inspections at the roadside. Inspectors truly do have the ability to save lives in sometimes unexpected ways. n