Trucker ‘Grateful To Be Alive’ After Rollover Crash

April 15, 2023 3:51 am

SOUTH STRABANE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – A trucker who lost control of his rig before a rollover crash left the tractor-trailer dangling from an overpass in Washington County is sharing his story with our news partners at Channel 11. The tractor-trailer was about five stories above ground as it hung from an I-79 overpass. “I rolled it for a long time, I was thinking it was maybe going to fall off, but luckily it didn’t,” said the driver, Kostas Hobitakis. He walked away with just a few scratches. His only injury was his to his elbow after using it to escape. “So after it was done I just thought, ‘quickly get out of here,’ I was hanging, I unbuckled it and just fell to the floor,” he said. “There was no way I could reach the top door, bottom door, the only thing was the windshield so I rammed into it a couple times and got out.” Hobitakis said there were multiple factors that played a role in the crash, including his heavy load: 40,000 pounds of cardboard that crashed to the ground. He insists speed wasn’t a factor. “I was going the speed limit, I was going the speed limit,” Hobitakis said. “In my head as this was happening, as I was coming down the hill, I am slowing down. The load was really heavy. Coming down, that specific bridge if you cross the line over it goes downward, so the thing is, my tire went into that and you just get sucked in. Hobitakis, who is from Chicago and started driving trucks three years ago said it’s a miracle that he survived. State police told Channel 11 they believe speed played a factor but they are still investigating. Hobitakis was cited for failing to properly negotiate a left turn.