JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man is sharing his experience after he managed to dodge logs that fell from a truck that ultimately crashed and overturned Thursday night on Interstate 95, just before the Fuller Warren Bridge.
Cory Saucier said a movie became a reality.
“I just had a real-life ‘Final Destination’ moment,” Saucier said.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, witnesses told troopers the truck was driving too fast around the curve which caused the truck to overturn and logs to spill across the five-lane highway.
Saucier said it was similar to “Final Destination 2” where a person is driving behind a truck with wood logs that become unraveled, but in the movie, that driver dies.
Thankfully, that was not the case on Thursday.
Saucier survived by dodging the logs barreling at him and other drivers.
After the crash, he sent News4JAX a video from the scene:
“I saw the thing bounce and as it was coming around I started [to] swerve this way, saw the car behind decide like he was gonna undertake me on the right so I go to swerve the log goes downlands,” Saucier said. “I hit it I feel my car bounce up and land I swerve a little bit but manage to keep it under control, almost barely clip the guy to my right and put myself back over and around from the log.”
The aftermath included wood logs blocking all the northbound lanes on I-95 and some spilled onto the southbound side of the road as well.
The scene looked like a construction site as crews picked up the logs one by one and drivers sat in traffic backed up for miles.
For Saucier, he walked away without a scratch, but his SUV had some damage. Saucier told News4JAX he’s grateful his 2007 Toyota Rav 4 handled swerving around the barreling logs well and believes it’s part of the reason he’s alive today.
On a lighter note, after surviving this crash, Saucier has a very important moment coming up next weekend. He and his fiancé are getting married.
To protect yourself from unexpected situations like this, the Florida Highway Patrol recommends motorists maintain safe-following distances, and be aware of their surroundings and potential hazards.