Truck dangles over ramp after crash; 1 dead

Driver released from hospital, passenger killed after crash on SR 84

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. ā€“ A bakery truck hung precariously over an I-95 ramp after an early-morning crash Wednesday that killed one person and injured another.

About 5:25 a.m., rescue crews responded to reports that a truck had crashed into the cement wall on the westbound ramp to I-95 on State Road 84.

"The truck was going northbound on I-95 and got off on the S.R. 84 ramp," said Detective DeAnna Garcia. "When he got off the ramp, he was attempting to make a left hand turn and then go westbound on S.R. 84. He was unsuccessful at making the turn and collided with the side of the wall."

Firefighters were able to rescue 43-year-old Buenaventura Fernandez, the driver. He was treated at Broward Health Medical Center and released about 11:45 a.m.

Just after 7:30 a.m., Fort Lauderdale police confirmed that a passenger who had been pinned inside the truck had died.

"It was scary. I was so scared. My daughter said, 'Mommy what happened,'" said one driver.

That driver was traveling north on I-95 underneath S.R. 84 when the truck crashed. She said huge chunks of concrete fell on to the expressway and punctured her tires when she drove over them.

"Thank God I'm alive. My daughter also, she's okay," she said.

A firefighter injured his hand during the rescue, said a spokesman for the City of Fort Lauderdale. He was treated at Broward Health.

A representative from Tracy Bakery confirmed that it's one of the company's trucks. She said the two people who were in the truck were making deliveries in Broward County.

Crews were able to stabilize the truck and bring it back onto the roadway about 90 minutes after the crash.

Traffic delays continue in the area.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation. Garcia said speed could be an issue, but that won't be determined until the investigation is completed.

Florida Dept. of Transportation engineers inspected the bridge to make sure it was structurally sound. They expect the southbound I-95 ramp to westbound S.R. 84 and one westbound lane of S.R. 84 to be closed periodically until sometime Thursday as crews clean up debris and replace about 10 feet of concrete barrier wall that was damaged.

A cost estimate of the repairs was not immediately available.

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A truck dangled precariously off a S.R. 84 ramp after an early-morning crash Wednesday morning.