Snake Blamed for Sinking Semi in Sisters Creek

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Witnesses say a semi truck driver intentionally swerved his rig off a bridge to avoid hitting a car and a person who were distracted by a snake in the road.

After his truck plunged into Sisters Creek, witnesses say the struggling driver was rescued and revived by a state contractor who happened to be working under the bridge at the time.

The chain of events began Monday at about 7:30 p.m.

The worker who raises and lowers the Sisters Creek Bridge on Heckscher Drive told police she saw a four foot long snake slithering across the bridge, so she left her post and signaled to an approaching driver to stop.

The car stopped. But the driver of the semi truck behind it told police he didn't have time to stop before he would have hit the car and the woman.

So 58-year-old James Gray squealed his brakes and swerved toward the guard rail, witnesses said.

His tractor-trailer smashed through the railing and nose-dived about 30 feet into the water below.

The water "just swallowed it," one witness said, remembering the entire semi sinking swiftly, but making nearly no splash.

A boat full of divers and workers happened to be floating just feet from the spot where the semi went down.

The team from Environmental Marine Construction Services was repairing a system along the base of the bridge under a state contract, according to Mike Goldman, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Transportation.

Gray, the driver, managed to free himself from the sunken semi cab. Despite the dark water and disorienting crash, he somehow swam to the surface.

He slung his arms around a metal structure under the bridge, but starting losing consciousness and slipping under the surface, a witness said.

One of the construction divers, Jeff Landers, leapt into the water and hauled Gray's limp body onto the boat.

Landers started administering CPR, giving Gray rescue breaths, a witness said.

Moments later, Gray woke up.

Managers from Gray's trucking company said his only injuries were a few scratches.

Gray had been released from the hospital by midday Tuesday, the managers said.

Recovery crews spent much of the day Tuesday pulling the tractor and its flatbed trailer out of the busy boat channel under the Sisters Creek bridge.

The cab of the semi truck was smashed and mangled. The trailer fared better, and the trucking company hoped to get it ready for the road again soon.

Gray had been hauling a load of brick pavers, witnesses said.

The pavers will stay on the bottom of the creek, and they may actually help with some of the underwater work being done by the FDOT contractor, workers said.

Tuesday morning, state inspectors determined that the truck crash did not do any significant damage to the bridge.

Repairs to the guardrail should take around three days and will begin after the Independence Day holiday weekend, Goldman said.

While some lanes may close temporarily during the work, Goldman said the FDOT does not plan to detour any traffic around the area.