CLEVELAND — A dump-truck driver for a Statesville grading company was airlifted to the hospital Monday evening following a collision with a train.
Harl Hercules Brown, 52, of Statesville, failed to yield to the Norfolk Southern train that was heading east on the railroad tracks, according to N.C. Highway Patrol Trooper S. Marshall.
Brown was charged with failure to yield at a crossing. He was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected through the windshield, the trooper said.
The incident occurred at 3:49 p.m. at Shaver Wood Products. Brown had just made a delivery at the Cleveland company and was heading back to Statesville, Marshall said.
Brown is a driver with J & H Clearing and Grading of Statesville. The cab of his truck was damaged and the hauler portion of the dump truck was torn from the chassis. The front passenger window was broken.
Cleveland Fire Capt. Ron Herion said a small fuel leak came from the truck and would need to be cleaned. He said the leak had already occurred before Cleveland fire crews arrived, so there was no fuel to contain.
There was some fuel that had not spilled from the truck’s gas tank.
A helicopter used a field just beyond the entrance of the company as a landing zone.
Brown was taken to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, the trooper said. However, hospital officials did not have a record of Brown.