Crews will wait for slow currents to recover tow truck, driver from Sacramento River, CHP says
Recovery efforts for the tow truck that crashed into the Sacramento River after a Tuesday night collision on Pioneer Bridge will not immediately proceed because dive teams have determined that river conditions are too unsafe, California Highway Patrol said Wednesday.
The Sacramento Drowning Accident Rescue Team and law enforcement agencies estimate river flow of between 5 and 6 knots, which is about double the maximum current speed of 1 to 3 knots permitted for such an operation, the CHP South Sacramento office said in a news release.
“This recovery operation is in the planning stages but is expected to involve divers deploying from a boat to connect the vehicle to a tug boat, which will then pull the vehicle closer to shore where it can be retrieved by a tow truck,” the release said.
No estimated date has been established for the recovery operation. CHP is the lead agency investigating the incident.
Some workers in the local tow truck industry were unhappy upon hearing that recovery and rescue efforts were suspended Tuesday night, expressing frustration on social media and to The Bee by phone Wednesday.
“They’re taking their god---- sweet time out there,” said Dayna Devencenzi of A Mama’s Towing. “Back in the day, (rescue crews) would have been out there last night.”
Devencenzi said she has worked in the towing business for 21 years and called it “ridiculous” that members of the Sacramento towing community have been left up in the air as search efforts did not continue into the night. She also noted the pain of the victim’s family members.
The tow truck plunged into the river just after 8:30 p.m. Tuesday following a collision involving a big-rig on the Highway 50 bridge that connects Sacramento and West Sacramento, CHP said.
Rescue operations by responding agencies including CHP, police and the Sacramento and West Sacramento fire departments were called off later Tuesday night after river conditions were deemed unsafe, with a Sacramento Fire Department battalion chief saying the operation would be transitioned into a recovery effort.
DART used sonar to try and locate the vehicle Tuesday night before ending the rescue search.
One small Coast Guard vessel responded to the incident but stood down upon arrival to the scene, Coast Guard District 11 spokesman Jordan Akiyama said Wednesday.
The Coast Guard is on standby and will only monitor for possible pollution impacts in the water, Akiyama said.
The tow truck driver is presumed dead, likely on impact upon the three-story drop from the bridge into the river below, officials said.
“We’re a tight-knit little community,” Devencenzi said. “When s--- like this happens, it’s pretty scary. Pretty nerve-wracking.”
No information regarding the victim’s identity or affiliated company for the tow truck has been released.
This story was originally published March 27, 2019 at 11:29 AM with the headline "Crews will wait for slow currents to recover tow truck, driver from Sacramento River, CHP says."
