Crime & Safety
Sleepy Driver Crashes Into Tractor Trailer, Police Say
Dozing van driver moderately hurt when he veers off I-78 in Upper Saucon and into a disabled tractor-trailer, troopers report.
A Berks County man was moderately injured recently when he fell asleep
while driving on Interstate 78 in Upper Saucon Township and woke up
underneath a trailer of the rig he struck, according to police.
Michael A. Tuturice, 27, of Birdsboro was westbound on I-78 when he
fell asleep at 10:41 p.m. Feb. 28, according to state police at
Fogelsville.
Tuturice's GMC Savana drifted off the roadway, where he
struck a disabled tractor-trailer that was legally parked on the
shoulder. Tuturice's van wedged under the trailer, with part of his
vehicle blocking the right travel lane.
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Tuturice received moderate unspecified injuries and was transported to
a hospital by Upper Saucon Ambulance Corps, police said. The truck
driver was unnamed in the police report, but apparently was uninjured.
Tuturice's van received heavy front-end damage, police said. The
trailer received moderate damage to the rear. Both had to be towed.
The right and middle westbound lanes were closed for about an hour, police said.
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Tuturice was charged with failing to maintain his lane of travel, police said.