Hot Dog Filler, ‘Mysterious’ Red Liquid Spill Onto Highway in Recent Trucking Accidents

About 15,000 pounds of hot dog filler?spilled onto the highway?near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 20 when the driver of a semitractor-trailer lost control of the vehicle and crashed onto the shoulder. The tractor-trailer hit several trees and overturned, leaving the driver and a passenger with minor injuries and a portion of Interstate 70?covered in the pink slime. According to authorities, the vehicle’s brakes were found to be “completely inoperable.”

In a separate incident on May 31, a?“mysterious” red liquid spilled?onto Interstate 15 in Salt Lake City, Utah, when a semi-truck lost control and overturned. No one was hurt in the crash and police said the fluid, which was not identified, was non-hazardous. The highway was closed for nine hours during cleanup efforts.

“Having tractor-trailers overturn for a variety of different reasons happens frequently,” said John Woods, Vice President, National Practice Group Leader, Transportation,?Burns & Wilcox, Scottsdale, Arizona. “It might not necessarily get the headlines that these two did, but the reality is that accidents involving large trucks occur way more often than anybody would like. It is, unfortunately, the nature of the beast.”

The trucking companies involved in these accidents would likely incur a variety of expenses, which could be covered under their?Motor Truck Cargo Insurance, Auto Physical Damage Insurance, Truckers Auto Liability Insurance, or other policies. When environmental damage is possible, Transportation Pollution Liability Insurance can also come into play.

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