The runaway asphalt truck left a scene of chaos. The truck took out the power in El Cerrito, and some neighboring cities, including Berkeley and Richmond, but the true chaos was on Moeser Lane, El Cerrito. The truck left a path of destruction in its wake: a snapped power pole, five badly damaged vehicles and most unfortunately, a home on fire. El Cerrito police Detective Sgt. Shawn Maples, one of the first rescue workers to arrive on the scene, says he heard cries coming from the burning truck and house, and stated digging through the debris.
Sgt. Maples spotted the driver lodged between the wheels of the truck, which had flipped on its side. The diver's legs were mangled and he couldn't move. Maples was able to grab his hand and, with some help from Police Chief Scott Kirkland and Detective Ken Zinc, he was able to pull the driver to safety. Maples said, "We dragged him out in a heartbeat while the truck went up in flames. I just wanted to get him out of there."
Another witness, Ruben Sharma, lives across the street from the single-story home that was destroyed. He was just about to head back to work around 1:30 when the crash occurred. He said, "First, I thought it was a major earthquake. This is unbelievable." His front yard is littered with bricks, broken glass, car parts, splintered wood and palm fronds.
A Honda sedan was also hit by the truck and was so crumpled that the driver was trapped inside. Rescue workers sliced into it, peeling back the roof to free the trapped driver. A sport utility vehicle that apparently had a man and boy inside ended up stuck in some shrubbery beside the burning house.
The driver of the truck, whose name was not released, broke both his legs in the crash. He's listed in serious but stable condition at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.
Excellent lead!
ReplyDeleteP2 gets a little repetitive -- tighten it up. Start a new graph when you get to the part about Maples.
Make each quote a separate paragraph.
Otherwise, this works. Good job!
18/20