Indianapolis - The company whose driver caused a fatal chain reaction crash on I-70 this week apparently applied for a special permit only after the wreck happened. An Indianapolis man died in the multiple vehicle pile-up on Monday.
According to State Police, Poindexter, which does excavating and transportation work, asked for the "oversize load" permit an hour after the crash occurred.
On Monday morning, one of Poindexter's semi drivers who was hauling a road paver crashed into a construction median, pushing it in to oncoming traffic and causing a chain reaction crash in the opposite lanes.
"A permit is required to be obtained prior to ever starting the route," said Stephanie McFarland, Department of Revenue.
Judson "Dale" Dye, 41, was killed. The Indianapolis man was on his way to work in Plainfield. Four others were injured and six vehicles were damaged.
A man who said he is an estimator for Poindexter asked that we not show video of the east side company.
"I'm not saying that something that something didn't happen. I'm sorry it did. But this company is having a hard enough time as it is," he said. "We don't need any more bad publicity."
Poindexter has worked on massive projects like the Honda plant in Greensburg and smaller ones like the Glendale Mall renovation.
According to Poindexter's website, safety is a priority. They have a full-time safety director whose job it is to make sure that all employees are up to date on safety procedures and regulations.
Had Poindexter applied for the "oversize load" permit prior to Monday, it's possible state officials would have altered the route, or time of delivery - not necessarily during rush hour.
"We need to be able to look at the dimensions of that load and also to look at the route so we can determine - is this a permit that we can grant?" said McFarland.
Just two months ago, the company was ordered to pay $12,500 in fines for safety violations while doing excavation work at a site in Greenwood. The US Department of Transportation gave Poindexter a 72.4 percent, essentially a failing grade. Anything over 65 percent is above the federal government's threshold for unsafe driving. During that past 24 months, the company received 15 citations for moving violations.
At Poindexter we tried to find out what happened with Monday's permit request. An unidentified employee asked us to leave the property, which we did. Across the street, the estimator was insistent we not show the place at all.
Indiana State Police detectives are currently investigating the crash and the permit issue. They have cited the semi driver and will eventually hand over the case to the Marion County Prosecutor's office to decide if criminal charges are appropriate. The state can fine Poindexter up to $5,000 for the permit violation
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for sharing with us!