JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jack Becker semi-truck straddled the on-ramp to I-10 westbound from I-295 for more than five hours Friday. The motor oil and diesel exhaust fluid it was carrying spilled onto the road and into the shoulder. "Additional assistance has been requested by the Environmental Protection Agency, not only state but the city as well," said Sgt. Dylan Bryan, with the Florida Highway Patrol. Crews poured a powder all over the road to absorb the oil and other fluids as a tow truck worked to get the semi-truck upright. "Witnesses that actually observed the crash occur indicated that the driver possibly fell asleep," said Bryan. Action News Jax checked into just how serious this problem is. We requested statistics from FHP that showed in the last three years it's investigated 44 crashes where truck drivers have reported fatigue; 21 of those crashes involved injuries, and eight of them were serious. The president of Jack Becker Distributors, David Rowland, was at the scene but did not want to speak on camera. He said the 51-year-old driver, William Reginald Prevatt, has been with the company for several years. According to Rowland, Prevatt had just left the company's warehouse, which is less than 2.5 miles from the accident site. In a statement sent to Action News Jax, Rowland said: "We are very thankful that no one was seriously hurt in the accident this morning. Jack Becker Distributors, Inc. has been in business since 1956 and this is the first time one of our trucks has been involved in a rollover incident.
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"We wanted to clarify some things that were being reported by various news channels. The product on the truck was not crude oil. It was Virgin motor oil that goes in car and truck engines. There was less than 700 gallons of bulk motor oil and not all of it was spilled. I can’t speak to the exact amount yet, but we should be able to determine that by what is left in the totes and cases. The other product on the truck is a product called Diesel Exhaust Fluid. It is made up of 67.5% Water and 32.5% Automotive Grade Urea. This product is used to reduce emissions from diesel engines and is not hazardous to the environment in any way. It actually exists to protect it. Again, we are thankful that no one was seriously injured. We want to thank the Firefighters and other Emergency Response folks for reacting as fast as they did. We have and will continue to work with any agencies necessary to get the spill cleaned up properly.”
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Local truck driver Terry Green said knowing when to stop is critical. "I might drive for two hours and get tired and have to pull over take a 30-minute break, then go back out," said Green. Prevatt is recovering at UF Health and is in stable condition. While FHP believes fatigue was a factor, Bryan said they still need to speak with Prevatt to confirm that information. The Department of Environmental Protection said the truck company has hired a local contractor to finish cleaning up the site.