Big Rig Driver In Concord Crash Had Revoked License; Witnesses Say Incident Was Terrifying

Three people were taken to the hospital after a tractor trailer driver lost control of his rig and plowed into nearly a dozen vehicles in a restaurant parking lot in Concord.Authorities say around 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Straker Junior Shuler III, 58, was driving the tractor trailer northbound on Interstate 85 when, inadvertently, he went up the ramp to Speedway Boulevard.

He told officers he didn’t realize he had exited until he saw the stoplight at the top of the ramp, and he tried to stop but couldn’t.The big rig, which was carrying household cleaning products, was going about 65 miles per hour when it entered the Texas Roadhouse Grill parking lot and began crashing into cars, Concord police said.

Officers said 11 cars in the parking lot were damaged, but the restaurant itself was not hit. The building was evacuated as a precaution.The damage to the big rig, the other cars and the restaurant property is estimated at $1 million.The Highway Patrol, which assisted the Concord police in the investigation, said Shuler has a revoked commercial driver’s license in his home state of Ohio.

Troopers cited him for that offence and also for having an improper log book.Shuler has been charged by Concord police with driving without a license and careless and reckless driving.Authorities said there were no signs that drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash.

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