Not many details on the 4runner but a cool story none the less:
Plow driver stranded in blizzard
Originally published February 17, 2010
Plow driver Reggie Weaver was stranded in his truck for 18 hours last week on U.S. 340. He is showing the height of the snow as compared to the top of his snow plow.
Feb. 10 began as a regular work day for plow driver Reggie Weaver. But as the winds whipped and the snow flew, his day took a turn for the worst.
"It was almost like a horror movie," said Weaver, an employee of Gabe's Services Inc., a contractor hired by the Maryland State Highway Administration.
Weaver was driving his regular route, westbound on U.S. 340, in Wednesday's blizzard. As he plowed the right lane, a wind gust caused Weaver to lose sight of the road. He hit a snowdrift and got stuck.
"(The snow) was over my windshield, over my side doors," he said. "Nothing but snow all the way around."
His truck is 12 feet tall.
For 18 hours, Weaver sat, trying to think of anything but the snow. "I had to find somewhere in my mind to go," he said.
The Martinsburg, W.Va., resident rationed his food and water, not knowing how long he would be stranded. His prospects were not promising.
"Nobody could get through," Weaver said.
He called his supervisor, who talked to the SHA, but in Frederick 's state of emergency, trucks could not make it through the whiteout conditions to Weaver.
"I had to sit there and just wait," he said.
His diesel-powered truck never stopped running and neither did the heater.
"I can see how people can die in the wilderness like this," Weaver said. "And I was just sitting on the highway."
He passed the hours by listening to the radio, reading his Bible and doing "a little bit of praying, a little bit of studying."
Anything to keep himself busy and his eyes off of the clock, he said. "I had to hope that someone was coming."
Someone did: GSI owner Gabe Lawson and another employee battled the snow in a Toyota 4Runner and reached the truck about 4 a.m. Thursday, Weaver said.
Lawson waited for state workers to open the roads, but they did not make the progress SHA or Lawson had anticipated.
"I was going to get him one way or another," Lawson said. "Whatever it took."
And it took a lot.
When he met a state highway truck on Butterfly Lane near Md. 180, the driver suggested Lawson follow his lead as he plowed the roads. A police officer then told Lawson he could not go further in the blizzard.
Lawson aborted that plan, and tried U.S. 340 instead. Blocked by snow drifts on the westbound side, he changed directions and headed east. "That's where the trek started," Lawson said.
"We plowed and dug and spun and went into the abyss," he said.
They maneuvered through snow drifts, fast winds and darkness until they thought they were close to Weaver.
A few detours later, Lawson called Weaver, telling him to pack his things because they were almost there. Lawson was not able to make it all the way to Weaver, whose truck was stranded on U.S. 340 West, about a half mile from Md. 17.
"He had to walk a quarter of a mile," Lawson said. "He looked like the abominable snowman."
Weaver left with Lawson and his partner, driving in their own tire tracks. "That was our saving grace," Lawson said.
The snow had drifted back over the road in some areas, and the SUV got jammed several times. It took more than nine hours to make the rescue.
Lawson recovered the stuck truck the following afternoon and plowed his way back home with it.
Weaver was not alone. Some state trucks were temporarily stuck in snow drifts reaching as high as 11 feet, SHA spokesman Charlie Gischlar said.
Highway crews weren't the only ones on the roads during the storm, despite warnings from state and county officials to avoid nonemergency driving.
"I'm at work, trying to keep (the roads) open for people, for essential needs," Weaver said. "I had to be out there. Other people didn't."
from: Plow driver stranded in blizzard - The Frederick News-Post Online
Plow driver stranded in blizzard
Originally published February 17, 2010
Plow driver Reggie Weaver was stranded in his truck for 18 hours last week on U.S. 340. He is showing the height of the snow as compared to the top of his snow plow.
Feb. 10 began as a regular work day for plow driver Reggie Weaver. But as the winds whipped and the snow flew, his day took a turn for the worst.
"It was almost like a horror movie," said Weaver, an employee of Gabe's Services Inc., a contractor hired by the Maryland State Highway Administration.
Weaver was driving his regular route, westbound on U.S. 340, in Wednesday's blizzard. As he plowed the right lane, a wind gust caused Weaver to lose sight of the road. He hit a snowdrift and got stuck.
"(The snow) was over my windshield, over my side doors," he said. "Nothing but snow all the way around."
His truck is 12 feet tall.
For 18 hours, Weaver sat, trying to think of anything but the snow. "I had to find somewhere in my mind to go," he said.
The Martinsburg, W.Va., resident rationed his food and water, not knowing how long he would be stranded. His prospects were not promising.
"Nobody could get through," Weaver said.
He called his supervisor, who talked to the SHA, but in Frederick 's state of emergency, trucks could not make it through the whiteout conditions to Weaver.
"I had to sit there and just wait," he said.
His diesel-powered truck never stopped running and neither did the heater.
"I can see how people can die in the wilderness like this," Weaver said. "And I was just sitting on the highway."
He passed the hours by listening to the radio, reading his Bible and doing "a little bit of praying, a little bit of studying."
Anything to keep himself busy and his eyes off of the clock, he said. "I had to hope that someone was coming."
Someone did: GSI owner Gabe Lawson and another employee battled the snow in a Toyota 4Runner and reached the truck about 4 a.m. Thursday, Weaver said.
Lawson waited for state workers to open the roads, but they did not make the progress SHA or Lawson had anticipated.
"I was going to get him one way or another," Lawson said. "Whatever it took."
And it took a lot.
When he met a state highway truck on Butterfly Lane near Md. 180, the driver suggested Lawson follow his lead as he plowed the roads. A police officer then told Lawson he could not go further in the blizzard.
Lawson aborted that plan, and tried U.S. 340 instead. Blocked by snow drifts on the westbound side, he changed directions and headed east. "That's where the trek started," Lawson said.
"We plowed and dug and spun and went into the abyss," he said.
They maneuvered through snow drifts, fast winds and darkness until they thought they were close to Weaver.
A few detours later, Lawson called Weaver, telling him to pack his things because they were almost there. Lawson was not able to make it all the way to Weaver, whose truck was stranded on U.S. 340 West, about a half mile from Md. 17.
"He had to walk a quarter of a mile," Lawson said. "He looked like the abominable snowman."
Weaver left with Lawson and his partner, driving in their own tire tracks. "That was our saving grace," Lawson said.
The snow had drifted back over the road in some areas, and the SUV got jammed several times. It took more than nine hours to make the rescue.
Lawson recovered the stuck truck the following afternoon and plowed his way back home with it.
Weaver was not alone. Some state trucks were temporarily stuck in snow drifts reaching as high as 11 feet, SHA spokesman Charlie Gischlar said.
Highway crews weren't the only ones on the roads during the storm, despite warnings from state and county officials to avoid nonemergency driving.
"I'm at work, trying to keep (the roads) open for people, for essential needs," Weaver said. "I had to be out there. Other people didn't."
from: Plow driver stranded in blizzard - The Frederick News-Post Online
