Florida Turnpike Tractor-Trailer Crash Kills Two Near Boynton Beach

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on July 25, 2021

According to preliminary collision reports from the Florida Highway Patrol officers operating in Palm Beach County, two individuals were killed and one was injured Thursday morning after they were all involved in a deadly tractor-trailer accident along the Florida Turnpike close to mile marker 84 and the Boynton Beach off-ramp.

Investigations by detectives with the Florida Highway Patrol indicate that it was approximately 8:30 a.m. on July 22, 2021, when a 66-year-old trucker from Hialeah was driving a tractor-trailer in the southbound direction down the Florida Turnpike between Atlantic Avenue and Boynton Beach Boulevard. Simultaneously, two other motorists on the roadway – a 37-year-old woman from Royal Palm Beach and a 42-year-old woman from Loxahatchee – were also experiencing the same stop-and-go traffic as the semi-truck; a common occurrence for this particular area during this time of day.

It was as all three vehicles were lined-up in the right-hand lane and dealing with the headaches and congestion of the morning rush hour that both of the smaller sedans in front of the semi were forced to make a quick stop. The driver of the tractor-trailer was unable to slow down in enough time to avoid an accident, and he rear-ended one of the sedans. The force of impact from this collision caused the tractor-trailer to crash through a concrete bridge barrier and nosedive into the canal below where it slammed into an unoccupied boat and finally stopped after the cab of the semi-truck became partially submerged in the water.

Local Palm Beach County emergency response teams and authorities with the Florida Highway Patrol were at the accident site within a matter of minutes and transported the 66-year-old truck driver to the Delray Medical Center where he passed away shortly after arrival. The 42-year-old woman from Loxahatchee also sustained fatal injuries during the collision and she was sadly pronounced dead at the scene. The 37-year-old Royal Palm Beach driver was treated for minor injuries.

Southbound traffic was diverted from the area for nearly 7 hours while wreckers pulled the semi-truck from the canal and cleaned up the large amounts of debris left behind from the collision.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.