Seductive
June 15th, 2004, 11:00 AM
One official calls barrier 'an accident waiting to happen'
MARTINSBURG - It was an accident waiting to happen.
That's the way Berkeley County Commissioner Howard Strauss described the barrier cables that failed to protect two young men who died in a weekend crash.
The crash, which occurred about 8:30 a.m. Saturday, turned Interstate 81 into a churning conflagration of twisted, melted metal and debris and snarled traffic throughout downtown Martinsburg for nearly 10 hours.
"This accident proved (the barrier cable) will not stop a truck," Strauss said.
The weekend crash killed Mark Hubbard, 36, of Martinsville, Va. and 29-year-old Alexander Springer of Norfolk, Conn., when Springer's northbound tractor-trailer sliced through a section of barrier cable after crossing an overpass at Exit 12. Springer's rig collided head-on with the truck driven by Hubbard.
Both trucks exploded on impact, according to a deputy with the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department. The explosion occurred when the fuel tank of the northbound vehicle was ripped open as the truck skidded against a barrier for more than a quarter of a mile, authorities said.
MARTINSBURG - It was an accident waiting to happen.
That's the way Berkeley County Commissioner Howard Strauss described the barrier cables that failed to protect two young men who died in a weekend crash.
The crash, which occurred about 8:30 a.m. Saturday, turned Interstate 81 into a churning conflagration of twisted, melted metal and debris and snarled traffic throughout downtown Martinsburg for nearly 10 hours.
"This accident proved (the barrier cable) will not stop a truck," Strauss said.
The weekend crash killed Mark Hubbard, 36, of Martinsville, Va. and 29-year-old Alexander Springer of Norfolk, Conn., when Springer's northbound tractor-trailer sliced through a section of barrier cable after crossing an overpass at Exit 12. Springer's rig collided head-on with the truck driven by Hubbard.
Both trucks exploded on impact, according to a deputy with the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department. The explosion occurred when the fuel tank of the northbound vehicle was ripped open as the truck skidded against a barrier for more than a quarter of a mile, authorities said.