A Heavy Tow Truck Loses Control, Injures Driver

A heavy tow truck towing a garbage truck lost control and went off Wood Street in Jefferson Valley shortly before 2 p.m. today.

The Yorktown Auto Body truck went down an embankment, and the driver was trapped in the vehicle, which was hanging 8 feet down. He was extracted at around 2:30 p.m. 

The driver, Garry M. Clearwater, 40, of Peekskill was unable to slow down his vehicle while going down the hill, police said. He was transported to the Hudson Valley Hospital and sustained injuries to his back, neck and leg, but he had no broken bones. 

He was taken out of the back window of his tow truck, put on a backboard and onto a stokes basket, and carried into the ambulance, Lt. Lou Barbieri of the Lake Mohegan Fire Department said. 

"It was a matter of stabilizing the two trucks (tow and garbage trucks) before we went to try to take him out," he said. 

Police said the exact cause is yet to be determined. There are skid marks and debris to investigate. Officer Larry Eidelman said there are different pieces they need to put together.

"You don't want to make the wrong conclusions," he said.

It appears that speed was not a factor, but rather a mechanical problem. The driver was unable to stop, whether he lost air pressure in the brakes, or the garbage truck he was towing was too heavy is yet to be determined, police said. 

Lake Mohegan Fire Department, Yorktown Police Department and Yorktown Paramedics were on the scene. 

The tow truck went off into the driveway of the Mackey family. Daniel Mackey, 20, was outside his home at the time of the incident. He heard screeching tires, and saw the truck coming down the hill at a fast speed. It hit some trees and went into the driveway.

"I was scared," he said.

His family has witnessed two other accidents in the past couple of years at the same location.

Robert Kissh was the owner of the Mid-Hudson Waste garbage truck, which the tow truck was pulling. He was not there at the time of the accident, but came to the scene afterwards.

Lake Mohegan First Assistant Fire Chief Brian Wolert said the two trucks would have to be taken out separately, after the garbage truck gets stabilized. 

Two A&P Collision trucks, from Ossining, were called in to tow the two trucks. 

"You got a lot of weight here," A&P Collision owner Ray Oakley said. "You have to be very careful. You have to take your time."

He said they might have to try a couple of techniques to see which one works best to pull out both trucks, which could take a few hours. They would first need to level the surface and make a smooth ramp, up which the trucks would be pulled out separately. 

The road between East Main Street and Hill Boulevard has been closed off by police, as well as the area near Wood Street.