Source: The McDowell News, Marion, N.C. (TNS)
An investigation continues on a fatal wreck that took the life of a dump truck driver Tuesday morning in Old Fort.
The driver of a dump truck was killed when his truck lost its brakes coming down Old Fort Mountain and crashed into the new gas station and Taco Bell under construction along Bat Cave Road. The wreck happened at about 10:23 a.m. Tuesday, according to Old Fort Police Chief Melvin Lytle.
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On Wednesday, Lytle said the driver’s name was Ralph Hibbert and he was 65 years old. He was from Georgia and his family has been notified.
Hibbert was transporting railroad ballast, a gravel for railroad support, for a company contracted by Norfolk Southern Corp., which is working to repair the heavily damaged railroad line between Old Fort and Black Mountain.
Lytle said it is not known when or where the brakes on Hibbert’s truck failed as he drove down the mountain on Interstate 40.
“We are waiting for the investigation into the vehicle,” Lytle said.
He said witnesses saw Hibbert trying to avoid other vehicles as his truck careened down the mountain and then crashed into the construction site for the new Taco Bell and gas station.
Lytle said a couple of construction workers were at the site when the wreck happened on Tuesday, but none were injured.
Lytle said Tuesday the wreck was caused by a mechanical issue with the dump truck and the driver did not have a health emergency.
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