x

Rio Hondo Residents Concerned with Stranded Tractor Trailer

7 years 3 weeks 5 hours ago Tuesday, March 07 2017 Mar 7, 2017 March 07, 2017 6:31 PM March 07, 2017 in News

UPDATE (3/8): A stranded tractor trailer that was causing concerns for Rio Hondo residents was removed.

The trucking company, GRT, out of Laredo sent a driver to the Valley to pick up the truck on Tuesday.

Some residents said the big rig was parked on the shoulder lane on FM 106 near La Tina ranch for nearly a week. A company spokeswoman said the driver suffered a heart attack and had to pull over.

The truck was left with the hazard lights on after the driver was taken to the hospital. 

--------

RIO HONDO – A stranded tractor trailer has some people near Rio Hondo concerned for their safety. They said it’s putting drivers at risk.

FM 106 near La Tina Ranch is a two-way road on the outskirts of Rio Hondo. Blinking lights on the trailer are the only warning for drivers.

“At first I was thinking it was maybe drugs or something, but it is kind of weird that it’s out here,” Eric May said.

A concerned viewer reached out to CHANNEL 5 NEWS about the tractor trailer. The viewer claimed the truck had been sitting on the side of the road for almost a week.

“It’s dangerous just having it out there because a lot of boaters from the arroyo, they pass with the boats. We’re out in the country but it’s a busy road,” he said.

We wanted to know who owned the tractor trailer and why it was parked on the side of FM 106. We did some digging and discovered GRT Transportation from Laredo owns the big rig.

We called the company to get some answers.

GRT spokeswoman Jennifer Garza said the driver was forced to pull over on the road because he suffered a heart attack.

An ambulance picked him up and transported him to a Harlingen hospital. The truck was left behind with the hazard lights on.

Garza added it was their driver’s condition which they were worried about, not immediately removing the tractor trailer.

But like residents and drivers in the area, the Cameron County Sheriff’s Department has taken notice of the stranded trailer.

On Sunday, deputies issued the warning, asking the trucking company to remove the tractor trailer by Wednesday afternoon or face having it towed.

The trailer’s hazard lights are dead. May hopes it’ll be gone by nightfall.

“Usually when I drive in, I put my blinker, people go on the shoulder to pass me, like yesterday I was coming from the store, and I was like, ‘Should I pull in quick before this car?’ You know he might run into the back of the trailer,” May said.

Garza said GRT Transportation doesn’t frequent the Valley. She said they are sending a driver to pick up the trailer.

She wouldn’t say if the trailer was loaded with products or where it was headed.

GRT said the trailer should be off the side of the road and on its way back to Laredo by Tuesday evening.

More News


Radar
7 Days