A new video shows the aftermath of the terrifying dust storm that caused a 21-vehicle pileup on Montana’s Interstate 90 on Friday. The huge accident killed six people, including two children.
In a nearly two-minute video shared on Facebook, Jose Strickland, who was driving a rig with his father, moves through the middle of the freeway, showing the mangled cars and trucks that fill the road and noting casualties and other details.
(Warning: this video may be disturbing.)
“Visibility plummeted in an instant, and we found ourselves skidding and everyone rushing off the road to safety,” Strickland wrote alongside the video. “My heart goes out to the affected families. »
Strickland goes on to say that he helped save one man’s life but lost another before help could arrive.
“I still can’t get over the fact that we were one truckload away from disaster. For some reason my dad Raul Joseph Beger decided to get behind the wheel after lunch and to say the least, I’m glad his experience kicked in.”
In an interview, Strickland, 26, told TODAY that he and his 54-year-old father, Raul Joseph Beger, were driving for Rivas Trucking in Houston, Texas, and were en route from Billings to Aurora when out of nowhere, the dust blew. in and created a low visibility situation.
The father-son team was contacted by radio by an associate, who was only yards from the accident and warned them to pull over.
“It was a chain reaction,” Strickland said. “There was no warning”
Strickland said as soon as his father stopped the vehicle, they jumped out and ran to the side of the road.
“My dad has about 32 years of experience and I just got my CDL (commercial driver’s license) at the end of last month. He was the one who trained me,” Strickland said.
Strickland and his father sprang into action, helping authorities rescue a man trapped in his vehicle.
“Given the area we were in and the number of people affected, the first responders were stretched quite a bit,” he said. “Once the extraction team was able to open the door, we had to help get him onto the stretcher and into the ambulance. »
In the comments, people offered prayers for the victims and respect for those who have the often dangerous job of driving a rig.
The fast-rising storm came before 5 p.m. Friday, with winds picking up dust at a gust of 64 mph. The National Weather Service had issued a severe thunderstorm over Billings, a town 40 miles west of Hardin, but the winds exceeded the thunderstorm.
“It just heightened my respect for all riders,” Strickland said. “It’s a lot of responsibilities they carry and at any time lives can be changed. »
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