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Driver Hurt After Car Collides With Steel Beams On Flatbed Truck In Walpole

WALPOLE (CBS) -- A driver was seriously hurt in a horrific crash on School Street in Walpole around 11 a.m. on Monday. Firefighters and police raced to help remove the man whose car crashed into an oversize truck carrying long steel construction support beams that sheared his car in half.

"The poor gentleman is driving down the street and that steel beam is blended in with everything else and he went right in it," neighbor Gilbert James said. He recorded cell phone video of the man being rescued from the crushed car.

"When the officers got here, they discovered one lone occupant, the male, elderly, who had some significant injuries," Walpole Police Chief John Carmichael said. "The officers immediately rendered aid."

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Police shut down part of School Street after the crash Monday. (Photo credit: Walpole Police)

Walpole police say the driver of the car is in his 70s. He had to be taken to a Boston Hospital by helicopter.

Investigators are still piecing together how this horrifying scene unfolded. They say cloudy conditions may have played a role. "The beams might have blended in a little bit with the sky and the background so that could have been one issue that unfortunately the operator may not have even seen the beams," Carmichael said.

The crash took place on School Street, which is a residential area. Police say the truck was pulling out of KW Steel Structures with two safety escorts. "There were two safety vehicles in the area, but we are investigating their proximity to the truck at the time of the crash," Carmichael said.

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A crash on School Street in Walpole (WBZ-TV)

Neighbors are complaining about the work being done out of the building and there's a hearing in progress with the zoning board.

"It's gotten worse with these big beams, these big structural beams that they are fabricating in here," neighbor David Lynch said. "I hate to see this happen to anybody and this type of business just should not be allowed in this neighborhood."

Harry Webster is general manager of KW Steel Structures. "It's all things that are allowed per the code," Webster said. "Right now, my biggest concern is with the driver I don't know how he's doing, hoping that he's OK."

The accident remains under investigation. No charges have been filed.

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