A UPS driver from Longview, Texas suffered heat-related symptoms and fainted at the wheel on Friday.
ANNA, Texas – A UPS driver suffered heat-related symptoms and fainted at the wheel north of McKinney, Texas.
The driver, from Longview, Texas, was transported to a hospital Friday after the crash in Anna just off the highway. The man received medical care and was released Saturday.
Video before the crash captures the UPS vehicle traveling at excessive speeds and narrowly avoiding a collision with another vehicle just before the accident.
“The car just kept going left, left, left, and then once that red car comes passing him I’m like, ‘Oh, you know, this is serious,'” Henry Huynh, who recorded the video, told FOX 4 in Dallas. “And once boom, he hits the tree, I’m like, ‘This is serious.'”
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A UPS driver suffered heat-related symptoms and fainted at the wheel north of McKinney, Texas.
(Henry Huynh)
Hunyh said the UPS truck was in front of him at first, and swerved a few times before going up over the median and into oncoming traffic.
“Once he hit the tree, I looked over, and he was just unconscious,” he said.
David Reeves, president and principal officer for the Teamsters Local 767 Union, said this wreck could have been very dangerous for the driver and the public. Reeves confirmed to FOX 4 that the driver suffered from heat-related illness as temperatures reached 102 degrees in Dallas-Fort Worth on Friday.
Reeves said the driver called UPS to alert them that he wasn’t feeling well after six or seven hours on the job. The driver was told to drop off his packages with another driver before ending his shift, Reeves told FOX 4.
The world’s largest package delivery company said last year that a tentative agreement with the Teamsters union that included new cooling gear and enhanced training, which will be unveiled through this year. According to the company, newly purchased small package delivery vehicles will come equipped with air conditioning starting last January, while all larger delivery trucks will receive a second during the year.
Additionally, the company said it would take steps to adjust the airflow in the cargo holds, which could reduce floor temperatures by up to 17 degrees.
Excessive Heat Warnings in Texas this week
Texas continues to deal with triple-digit temperatures and heat index readings near 113 in parts of the state this week. Heat Advisories stretch from the state’s Panhandle into South Texas. An Excessive Heat Warning has been issued Tuesday for much of the state, including areas just west of Fort Worth, Houston and Corpus Christi.
(FOX Weather)