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Shippers, Truckers Deal With Soaring Fuel and Labor Costs |  | 
The cost of labor and fuel are rising at their fastest rate in year. (Photo: Brian Hadden/Trucks.com)
The cost of labor and fuel — the two largest trucking industry expenses — are rising at their fastest rate in years, adding pressure to manufacturers and retailers to raise the price of goods. Drivers are leaving the industry to take jobs in other labor-starved industries that allow them more time with their families. Fewer younger workers are entering the industry, leaving trucking with an aging workforce that is retiring rapidly. Motor carriers are trying to address the trends by increasing pay. “We have equipment sitting right now because we can’t find drivers,” said Mike Card, president of Combined Transport of Central Point, Ore., which operates 500 trucks. Card said he isn’t losing drivers to other motor carriers, but to local businesses who can offer drivers something he can’t — guaranteed home time every night. “We see this happen when the economy is strong — we lose drivers because of new construction or other local jobs,” Card said. Last year, he implemented two pay increases to retain drivers. So far in 2018, he has increased driver wages twice to remain competitive in a market that he said is “desperate” for drivers. “Right now, I can raise my prices because the economy is strong, Card said. About 36 percent of Card’s operating costs are driver-related expenses, including wages, training, payroll processing, workers’ compensation coverage and health insurance. Driver compensation accounted for 33 percent of motor carrier expenses, according to 2016 data collected by the American Transportation Research Institute, or ATRI. Driver wages and benefits are at a five-year high as fleets respond to the ongoing driver shortage, said Rebecca Brewster, president and chief operating officer of ATRI. Fuel, which accounted for about 21 percent of carrier expenses as of 2016 according to ATRI, also is rising rapidly. The average price of diesel reached $3.28 per gallon Monday, 29 percent from a year ago and its highest level in 41 months, according to the latest U.S. Energy Information Administration fuel pricing report. Diesel prices could climb as high as $3.50 by the end of 2018, said Noel Perry, an industry analyst and principal with Transport Futures. ATRI is surveying trucking companies and expects to see wages and fuel account for an even larger percentage of expenses when the data are in, Brewster said. Profit margins in the industry are already small, Brewster said, “so, when you see these increased costs you are going to start to see those bear out in transportation costs for the supply chain.” Trucking companies are already taking action to protect their earnings. Old Dominion Freight Line on Monday announced a 4.9 percent general rate increase to cover rising operating costs, driver pay in particular. The rate increase will partially offset “the rising costs of new equipment, real estate, technology investments and competitive employee wage and benefit packages,” said Todd Polen, vice president of pricing services of Old Dominion, a less-than-truckload carrier headquartered in Thomasville, N.C. XPO Logistics also recently implemented a 5.9 percent rate increase. These higher labor and fuel costs are rippling through the economy, creating higher expenses for manufacturers and retailers that will eventually be passed on to consumers. “We are seeing a pickup in inflation because the economy is doing relatively well,” Beth Ann Bovino, senior economist at Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings, told Trucks.com. “We are kind of in that little dance where previously consumers had control in terms of holding back pricing and businesses couldn’t pass it through,” she said. “However, we are at the point where you might start seeing a change because consumers seem to be able to absorb higher prices.” “We see pressure from transportation costs and [will] work through it to mitigate what we can,” Stephen Holmes, senior director of corporate communications of The Home Depot, told Trucks.com. “That might be adjusting costs in some other part of the business.” In recent calls with investors, executives at General Mills, Tyson Foods and John Deere said they were trying to raise prices to cover higher freight expenses. Shippers don’t have much flexibility in avoiding the higher rates charged by the trucking firms. There’s a shortage of trucks available to haul freight. There are about 6.6 loads for every available truck trailer, according to DAT Solutions, which tracks freight and rates. A year ago, there were 3.5 loads per every van. The imbalance gives motor carriers the ability to raise rates to cover rising expenses. The surging freight demand caught some shippers flat-footed, said Josh Brogan, vice president of A.T. Kearney, a supply chain consulting firm in Atlanta. “When the capacity crunch hit in the second half of 2017, most shippers really didn’t have a back-up plan,” Brogan told Trucks.com. “They were used to having 200 carriers or more to choose from before the capacity crunch hit to only having around 50 available carriers.” Besides paying higher freight rates, shippers are making adjustments to make them more attractive clients for motor carriers, Brogan said. Reducing truckers’ wait times at docks and reducing the number of days it takes for a trucking company to be paid are two ways shippers are working to attract truckers, Brogan said. Some shippers take 120–days to pay transportation costs, now some shippers are trying to pay within 30 days, he said. Oil prices fluctuate and could back off from recent highs, but the strong economy is only going to create more freight demand, Bovino said. “We are expecting housing starts to pick up. That means not only are truckers and shippers transporting construction-related materials to the sites, but if we are building more homes, that also means households are going to fill them with new stuff, so the demand for those items will also increase,” Bovino said. FedEx drivers win champion, rookie of the year titles in Ohio | |
FedEx Freight driver Scott Woodrome took home the grand champion title from the Ohio Truck Driving Championship. Woodrome also won first place in the tanker class. Another FedEx Freight driver, Wilt William, was named Rookie of the Year. FedEx Freight took home the large team award, as well. The competition was held May 18-19 in Sandusky. It was organized by the Ohio Trucking Association. The winners were: Grand Champion: Scott Woodrome, FedEx Freight Rookie of the Year: Wilt William, FedEx Freight 3-Axle: Paul Savill, UPS Freight 4-Axle: Jeff Pentrack, Pitt Ohio 5-Axle: Richie Bowman, Pitt Ohio Flatbed: Bryan Elges, FedEx Freight Sleeper: Mark Hewitt, Ross Transportation Services Inc. Step Van: Aaron Snyder, FedEx Ground Straight Truck: Paul Hillman, FedEx Freight Tank Truck: Scott Woodrome, FedEx Freight Twins: Jeff Rose, YRC Freight Chairman’s Award: Russ Simpson, Holland Sportsmanship Award: Merle Ashbaugh, UPS Small Team Award: Marathon Petroleum Large Team Award: FedEx Freight Volunteer of the Year: Mike Hathaway, AWP Top 5 overlooked reasons for truck driver constraint | |
Whether you want to call it a shortage or a “driver retention” issue is semantics. There’s a “capacity crunch,” and the issue is not a new one for the trucking industry. According to a 1998 report published in the Monthly Labor Review, deregulation led 586,000 new trucking employees to enter the industry between 1980 and 1994. Still, with the large entrance of new trucking companies, driver shortages were a major issue, as the resulting increased competition and low trucking margins pressured driver wages and made recruitment difficult. According to the ATA, “To move 9.2 billion tons of freight annually requires nearly 3 million heavy-duty Class 8 trucks and over 3 million truck drivers.” America needs truck drivers. In addition to the persistent need for more drivers within a fragmented industry, there are additional headwinds that the trucking industry faces makes trucker recruitment difficult, particularly regarding younger drivers. 1. Commercial Drivers License (CDL) requirementsThe industry misses out in recruiting drivers after high school graduation, as the federal requirement is that interstate CDL holders be 21 years or older. As such, many potential young drivers are lost to other occupations, additional schooling, or military service. Additionally, for insurance requirements, the minimum age is bumped to 25 years for certain segments of the trucking industry, like hazmat or long-haul trucking. Finally, the time and financial requirements to attain a CDL is a detraction for some individuals, especially in a tight overall labor market. A CDL generally requires several weeks of training and testing, as well as tuition at a CDL school that can run as high as $7k. 2. Competition from other trucking sectorsThe growth in e-commerce (i.e., the Amazon effect) has greatly increased the need for trucking in other sectors. Separately, the growth of Uber and Lyft has created competition for drivers in the non-CDL arena. As such, companies that are recruiting drivers for the oil sector, many of which are centered in remote locations, face increased competition from potentially more attractive driver positions in other segments and geographies. 3. Discouraging immigrant driversOr least keeping the issue quiet. Last year Fleet Owner reached out to eight industry stakeholders with multiple phone calls and email messages to discuss immigrants in the U.S. trucking industry and either received no response or the equivalent of “no comment.” But the reluctance to speak about the issue flies in the face of the fact that recruitment of immigrant drivers appears to be successful. Currently, of the 1.2 million motor carrier-employed U.S. truck drivers (operating Class 8 trucks) about 224,722 or 18.6% are immigrants, according to U.S. Census data for 2011-2015 as analyzed by Justin Lowry, PhD, a Postdoctoral Researcher at George Mason University's Institute for Immigration Research. Figures for 2010-2012 clocked in at 15.7%, he said. If you are a foreign worker hoping to work as a truck driver in the US, you may be served best by applying for an H-2B Visa. Then, you have to secure an eligible job offer from an employer who has the necessary paperwork on their end, including a temporary labor certification for H-2B workers and successful submission and approval of Form I-129. Without a job offer and an employer to sponsor you, you can’t apply for the visa. USCIS (US Citizen and Immigration Services) states that your potential employer must also verify that the work will be temporary (under 12 months), prove a shortage of available US workers, and verify your experience in your field. The job must also offer payment equal to the prevailing wage for truck drivers where the company is located. And the current structure of the Visas don’t consider truck drivers “skilled labor.” Ouch. 4. Health ConsiderationsIn today’s more health-conscious society, it’s quite obvious to most job seekers that a position as a truck driver doesn’t promote one’s overall physical wellbeing. As to be expected with a stationary job, studies have shown that truck drivers on average have higher levels of obesity and lower life expectancies than most other occupations. The ATRI has proposed several initiatives to address this issue, including encouraging exercise facilities and healthy food choices at truck stops and travel plazas. Still, it seems health concerns will continue to negatively impact the attractiveness of the job for many potential drivers. 5. Drug testingAs FreightWaves has previously reported, six major carriers have asked the FMCSA for an exemption from urinalysis so they can switch exclusively to hair testing: J.B. Hunt, Schneider, Werner, Knight, Dupre Logistics, and Maverick. Schneider in particular said that by conducting side-by-side hair and urine screening, the company discovered that hair tests yield positive results at four times the rate of urinalysis. Sadly, many companies report that the ability to pass a drug test has become more difficult for many job applicants. This issue disqualifies applicants for many positions, not just truck drivers. (Although successfully passing a drug test seems particularly important to operating a truck or any large piece of mobile equipment.) Also, the trend to follicle drug testing, rather than urine testing, has enhanced the detection of illegal substances in an applicant’s body and has led to higher levels of drug test failures reported to companies. While it may help with safety and insurance costs, it’s yet another prohibiting factory in the stubborn issue of supply and demand for Over the Road truckers. The issue is complicated and fragmented, but whether you define it as a “shortage” or a “retention” issue, the question is: What’s being done about it? The story behind the 13-truck suicide lineup | |
At around 1 a.m. on April 24, police received a call that a man was threatening to jump off the Coolidge Highway overpass onto I-696 in Metro Detroit. What happened next captured the attention of the country and the world as 13 trucks lined up on the east and westbound lanes of the interstate so if the man did jump, he would only fall five or six feet onto a truck instead of more than 15 ft. onto the pavement. The photo of the truck convoy went viral garnering millions of views. We spoke with Michigan State Police First Lt. Michael Shaw about what the public doesn’t know about the incident and how truck drivers and police worked together to save lives.
What doesn’t the public know about this incident?I think there is some misconception that the truckers did this all on their own and they really didn’t. I don’t want to make it sound like 13 truck drivers just arbitrarily on their own drove underneath the overpass and sat there because that was one of the stories getting out there. If it was true, we would be promoting that, but that’s not exactly how it happened. How did the lineup happen?When we see a situation like this, the first thing we do is close off that portion of the freeway because we don’t want traffic running underneath the overpass. Believe it or not, some drivers beep and say stupid things [to the potential jumper] as they're going by. As a trooper directs traffic off the exit ramp, they will start identifying semi-trucks and he’ll grab just one truck and say ‘hey, I need you to continue on down the freeway.’ They’ll continue to the next trooper who will actually line them up underneath the overpass. You’ve done this sort of thing before?
Absolutely. It’s not an everyday occurrence. In my 20-some years, I can think of maybe a couple of times that we've actually had enough time to cover an entire east and westbound freeway compared to usually just one or two. Ninety-nine percent of the time, we've been pretty successful, thank goodness, and talked most people off the bridge and to get the help they need. It normally doesn’t take this long, but this incident took us some time to get him to the point where he was willing to accept help. Often, these type of situations fix themselves, so to speak, within 20 to 25 minutes. Maybe we’ll get one or two trucks lined up underneath just right where the person is. This particular time, when that photo was taken, it was two-and-a-half to three hours into the incident. We were actually able to run enough trucks underneath to cover the whole overpass. Usually, it happens so fast that we get one, maybe two semis under there, and that’s all we get. No one ever takes a picture of that. In general, we don’t take a lot of photos of our tactics. We just never talk about it with the media. We do it and move on. Are drivers usually receptive to being used in for this?One thing that we consider [is the cost to the driver]. We tell them right at the beginning what we need them to do. And if somebody says ‘no,’ we wouldn’t make them continue on, unless it’s something like they were the first truck and we had to get one underneath there [to start the ball rolling]. Then yeah, we would probably hijack you and take your truck and continue on. But usually if we’ve already got a couple down there and if a driver – for whatever reason, some employers are a lot different than other ones – really stresses that they would lose their employment, then naturally we’re going to send them off the exit ramp and find the next one. We were pretty fortunate in this particular case. It was about one or two in the morning. All that’s on the freeways during that time usually is trucks. We were able to get quite a few right off the bat. We sometimes refer to asking drivers for help as being ‘volun-told.’ I know there was some reluctance at MSP to send the photo into the Twittersphere. Why?At first, we feared that the next person who [wanted to jump] would know what we were trying to do and it might stop us. But then we took it as an opportunity to stress the fact that there is help out there through the suicide hotline, clergy, relatives and 911. There's always something out there that that might keep that person from going on the overpass. We’d rather get them help beforehand. Our reason for going public with the photo wasn’t to say that our troopers did a great job. I’m not saying anything about them. The truckers did a great job. I’m not holding anything back against them, either, but in that photo there's a guy up there who was making the decision whether to end his own life or not. That was the part we really wanted to key in on as far as the great job that the officers and the truckers did. There was someone up there that felt things were so bad that they would rather die. We figured that there are some other steps they could’ve taken before stepping onto that overpass. Where is that person now?I believe that person is out of the hospital and receiving the care that he needs. He was suffering from a family disturbance; a custody issue was his trigger. Hopefully, he’ll remember what those truck drivers did for him that day and decide that there's nothing worth losing your life over. Source of article click here : FleetOwner
Truck driver leaves waitress $2,000 tip | |
ROLAND, Ark. - A waitress at an Arkansas diner received a hefty tip of $2,000 from a Mississippi truck driver on Sunday. After moving to Roland, Brenda Pearson has been working as a waitress at the 4 Star Diner and on Mother's Day she waited on a customer who placed a to-go order she'll never forget. He ordered a cheeseburger. "It actually got made wrong first and I said well, it`s not correct, it needed two patties, but we fixed it and got it all ready," Brenda told KFSM. When it was time to pay, the customer wanted to leave a surprise tip. "The other customers were coming to pay out and he said $1000," Brenda said. "I said what? Are you serious? He said yes. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't hardly breathe. It took my breath away." It was $1,000 that the truck driver, David Platt thought Pearson needed. "It was late and there wasn`t really anybody around and so I got talking to her a little bit," David said. "We talked about the Lord and about her life and her children. I got the impression that she was having a hard time of it, so I thought I`d just help her out a little bit." But that's not it. David came back for pie an hour later and left another $1,000 tip. "I have two children at home," Brenda said. "I`ve been a stay-at-home mom for a couple of years. It will help us get caught up on the move and it was just God-sent." Brenda wasn't the only one at the diner who was surprised by the big tip. Some of the regular customers said they were shocked too. "Some of the girls get $20 on Sunday and stuff when they have special deals," Violet Hubbard, customer said. "But $1,000...$2,000? It`s amazing." Although the $2,000 tip wasn't planned, David said he knew it was the right thing to do. "Money is just paper or numbers on a screen," David said. "Self gratification only goes so far. So, when you`re helping another person, you`re adding something to the world. It`s an investment and people, people are what`s important." Brenda said she's extremely thankful for the generosity of the truck driver. She hopes to use the money to also help take care of her stepdaughters and their families. Trucking Alliance Pushing For Hair Test While OOIDA Says There’s No Need | |
 The Alliance for Driver Safety & Security, also known as the Trucking Alliance, plans to promote and support drug testing laws that require all people who apply for a safety-sensitive job in the US trucking industry to verify no opioid addiction or illegal drug use for at least 30 days prior to employment. The group says legislation could be introduced in January 2019. The Trucking Alliance cites Brazil as proof that hair testing is the most effective way to achieve the goal of drug-free commercial motor vehicle drivers. Brazil requires all commercial truck drivers to pass a hair test before renewing their license. More than 1 million Brazilian drivers have either failed the hair test or refused to renew their license, since the law took effect two years ago. “Current drug testing methods for truck drivers are failing,” said Lane Kidd, managing director of The Trucking Alliance. For example, Kidd says that in 2017, J.B. Hunt Transport identified 1,213 people who tested positive for drugs on their pre-employment hair test. Yet, 9 out of 10 of them passed the federal government’s mandated drug test, which is a urinalysis. “Clearly, the US Dept. of Transportation’s pre-employment drug test protocols are missing most lifestyle drug users and opioid addicts and that’s a national problem for our industry,” said Kidd. “We have an opioid problem in our nation and from my experience, we have one in our industry, too,” said Dean Newell, Vice President of Safety and Driver Training at Maverick USA, a major trucking company headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. “We [Maverick] started hair testing for opioids in 2014 and we’ve seen a steady increase [in opioid addiction] every year.” Opioids are undetected in a person’s system after a few hours, allowing opioid addicts to avoid drugs before submitting to a urinalysis. However, a hair exam can detect drug use for up to 90 days. Opioids subject to drug abuse in the trucking industry include codeine, morphine painkillers branded under hundreds of names, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxycodone marketed under such names as OxyContin®, Endocet®, Endodan®, Percoset®, Percodan®, Oxy-Fast®, OxyIR®, Roxicet® and Tylox, and the highly addictive opioids Methodone and Fentanyl. The US Department of Transportation recently added four of these – hydrocodone, oxycodone, hydromorphone, and oxymorphone to its pre-employment drug test protocols. But unless the applicant takes these opioids within a few hours of collection, a urinalysis drug test can miss their use. “We hope Congress will follow Brazil’s leadership and require a drug test that proves without a doubt that a truck driver job applicant hasn’t taken illegal drugs or abused opioids for at least 30 days,” said Kidd. Kidd also predicted that Congress might consider a new drug test law for all current truck drivers, requiring a hair test before they renew their commercial driver license, as Brazil requires. “Too many loopholes allow truck drivers to skip random drug testing, even after they’re involved in a serious large truck accident.” Kidd added that since 2006, J.B. Hunt Transport has refused to employ 5,060 job applicants who failed a hair test, after passing their urinalysis. Most of those truck driver applicants found jobs at other transportation companies. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association maintains its stance that there is no evidence to support the change to requiring hair testing. “The Trucking Alliance has yet to demonstrate that they have experienced a reduction in crash rate since their voluntary adoption of hair testing,” the OOIDA Foundation wrote. “Neither have they presented evidence showing that their hair testing labs meet the rigorous standards of scientific methodology for testing or that their hair testing equipment and protocol has been consistent and unbiased.” OOIDA says there were 32,166 fatal motor vehicle crashes in the United States in 2015. According to data reported by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, truck drivers recorded a positive drug test result in 185 of those crashes, which amounts to 0.58 percent. “Although the Trucking Alliance claims that hair testing is a safety issue, the facts clearly demonstrate that their petition is a solution in search of a problem,” the OOIDA Foundation wrote. Source: The Trucking Alliance, OOIDA |
Two More Trucking Companies Raise Driver Pay | |
 Two more trucking companies have joined a growing list of operators that are increasing compensation to retain their current drivers and attract new recruits. Memphis, Tenn.-based Ozark Motor Lines said it is improving both per-mile and accessorial pay for its company drivers. The company’s new starting rate for line haul drivers with less than one year of experience is 41 cents per mile, while drivers with five years or more experience will receive up to 46 cents per mile. The top scale for experienced drivers is now 48 cents per mile. Line haul team drivers start between 23 and 26 cents per mile, topping out at 26 cents per mile. Depending on their experience, regional drivers will start between 38 to 43 cents per mile, with the top pay at 46 cents per mile. In addition to traditional benefits, the company gives new drivers a signing bonus and has a flexible home time program that gives drivers 48 hours of time off after being on the road for 10 days. “At Ozark, we’re committed to bringing drivers the best when it comes to their compensation packages,” Ozark’s Director of Recruiting Michael Higginbotham said. Beginning June 1, Arlington, Wash.-based Smokey Point Distributing, a division of Daseke Inc., will introduce a guaranteed annual salary of $65,000 to qualified solo over-the-road drivers with flatbed experience. The company said the annual salary provides a consistent income regardless of the number of loaded miles an over-the-road driver makes each week. Drivers will also be able to earn additional compensation and bonuses. “Our company is taking ownership of our operational efficiency in good times and in bad. Our drivers will no longer be financially affected by a temporary lack of sales, delays due to weather or equipment maintenance requirements or delays in loading and unloading,” said CEO Dan Wirkkala. “Our new annual salary pay program will mean more stable incomes so they won’t have to put off paying their rent, mortgage or car payment until their next paychecks.” Earlier this month, the quarterly Trends in Truckload Recruitment and Retention survey from background screening service provider Driver iQ found that 72% of recruiters believe driver pay will increase in the second quarter, while 28% said it will remain the same. No one in the survey expected salaries to decline, a reversal from the fourth quarter of 2017, when 40% of recruiters said they anticipated driver compensation would drop. In the first quarter of 2018, 60% of the carriers in the survey said they have raised their cents-per-mile pay, while more than 50% have implemented performance bonuses and about 11% are implementing a guaranteed weekly wage. Fewer than 10% said they had not raised compensation levels.
Nussbaum Transportation is offering an ESOP. (TT file photo) When it comes to the overall compensation for drivers, the survey found that more than 80% of carriers believe that an annual wage of $75,000 would attract prospects and impact driver turnover. One company, Hudson, Ill.-based Nussbaum Transportation, last month announced it was giving its employees a 35% ownership stake in the company, through an employee stock ownership plan, known as ESOP. The company also is offering bonuses and other incentive programs including letting family members, or a driver’s dog, go on trips. The moves by Ozark and Smokey Point are the latest indication that carriers of all sizes are willing to boost compensation as a way of addressing the trucking industry’s driver shortage. 30 senators ask FMCSA to consider HOS changes | |
Thirty U.S. senators — 27 Republicans and three Democrats — signed a letter to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration asking for possible improvements in hours of service regulations. The four-paragraph letter dated May 17 asked FMCSA Administrator Ray Martinez made no specific recommendations. Instead it asked the agency to “provide for a commonsense framework for drivers, rather than a one-size-fits-all model.” It also said “it has become more apparent that HOS rules do not provide the appropriate level of flexibility for the safe operation of commercial motor vehicles.” It also said the senators hope FMCSA will be able to improve regulations and address issues within HOS regulations for all drivers, including long-haul drivers, short-haul drivers, agricultural and livestock haulers. We suggest FMCSA examine a wide range of options to address HOS issues and ensure safety, including, but not limited to, providing certain allowances for unique business or driver operations, elimination of unnecessary requirements, or improved utilization of non-driving time.” The three Democrats signing the letter were Jon Tester of Montana, Joe Manchin III from West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of Iowa.
Read the full letter and see the 30 signatories at this link.
Kind Truck Driver Rescued a Piglet Who Fell Off a Transport Truck and Showed Him People Can Be Good | |
Typically, falling out of a truck onto the highway isn’t exactly considered a good thing. However, if you’re a factory farm piglet on your way to the slaughterhouse, it can actually be a lifesaving event! When one exceptionally lucky piglet recently fell out of the transport truck he was riding in, a kind truck driver stopped and rescued him from the side of the road. Unable to give the sweet piglet the home and care he needs and deserves, the driver made sure that he got to The Blind Spot Animal Sanctuary, a North Carolina non-profit organization that “provides lifelong, loving care to neglected and homeless farm animals, placing those who are adoptable in forever homes.”
After spending some time relaxing and getting a health check at the sanctuary, the little guy is doing well and is in the process of getting his health certificate. The adorable piglet is almost ready to make his final journey to his forever home with a compassionate family in North Chesterfield, Virginia! This selfless family has offered to give him a new life where he can happily enjoy the rest of his days and never spend another second cooped up in an uncomfortable crate like he was on the farm. This piglet’s family can’t wait to welcome him home, but they need your help getting him there! If you or anyone you know is able to help transport him from The Blind Spot Animal Sanctuary in La Grange, North Carolina to his forever home in North Chesterfield, Virginia, the piglet would greatly appreciate it! Even if you can only take him part of the way, it will help this precious boy make it to his final destination. Can’t offer transportation for this pig? Don’t worry — you can still make a difference in the lives of farm animals like this piglet by making a donation to The Blind Spot Animal Sanctuary. No matter how small, your contribution will help this great organization continue to do the much-needed work of informing the public about the cruel reality of factory farming and saving innocent farm animals who desperately need care and loving homes! Image Source: The Blind Spot Animal Sanctuary/Facebook Teen airlifted to Indy hospital after truck carrying bamboo crashes on I-65 | |
BARTHOLOMEW COUNTY, Ind. – A 15-year-old boy was airlifted to Riley Hospital for Children Tuesday after the box truck he was in crashed in Bartholomew County. Authorities responded to the crash on northbound I-65 near mile marker 58 shortly after 9:30 a.m. Indiana State Police believe the driver of the truck, 55-year-old Chue Xiong of North Carolina, over-corrected when the vehicle ran off the right side of the road, causing it to roll onto its passenger side before sliding into the median. During the collision, a load of cut bamboo that Chue was hauling was released from the truck. It was reportedly being transported from from North Carolina to Minnesota.
Police say the teen, Kong Pheng Xiong, sustained serious injuries. He was treated at the scene before being flown to Indianapolis for further treatment. Chue, who is believed to be the teen’s uncle, sustained minor scrapes. He was treated at the scene. The Bartholomew County Health Department responded to the scene and determined that the load of bamboo shoots needed to be destroyed, according to ISP. Crews were on scene for nearly five hours for crash investigation and cleanup. Northbound traffic was stopped initially due to the medical helicopter landing. The investigation into the incident is ongoing. Drugs and alcohol are not believed to be factors. Truck spill spreads cookie dough all over North Carolina highway | |
 WILMINGTON, North Carolina --
A truck carrying cookie dough created a sticky situation when it had lost some of its load on a North Carolina highway.
Pender County officials tell news outlets the truck's cargo was sent onto U.S. Route 17 northeast of Wilmington near the New Hanover-Pender county line. The spill happened shortly before noon Tuesday and delayed traffic into the evening rush hour. Firefighters posted a photo on Facebook of the more than a dozen yellow containers on their sides. An official told The StarNews of Wilmington the load could've been waste that was thrown away.
Temperatures were around 80 degrees so it's unlikely the dough would've baked on the road. It is unclear where the truck came from or where it was going. Gas Prices Affecting the Trucking Industry | |
TALLAHASSEE, FL. (WTXL) - Gasoline prices are on the rise, hitting levels most haven't seen in almost three years. According to AAA, gas prices nationwide are up a nickel in just the last week. That's 20 cents in the last month, but one industry is feeling the pinch. Filling up at the pump is something all commuters must do, so when gas prices take a hike, they notice. But for truckers who have much bigger tanks to fill, they typically are the first to feel the increases in their pocket books. Ronald Glober with Prichard Brothers Land Clearing says, $340.00 of Gas will only last a day. Glober has been a truck driver for years and has seen his share of fluctuations in fuel prices. As with any other type of delivery transport, distance plays a big role in the overall cost. Because of the sheer volume a semi-truck can carry, they remain a popular choice for hauling products. And when the price of gas goes up, these drivers notice right away. The trucking industry is watching gas prices closely. What could be five to six dollars a tank for most commuters can mean hundreds of extra dollars for truck drivers. According to Glober, "About every 5 cents is about $20 per fill up or every time I put some fuel in. So by the end of the week I probably put another extra hundred dollars of fuel in." Multiply that by four and Glober is spending an extra 400-dollars a month. Just the slightest increase makes a huge difference in truckers' bottom line. For Derrick Kenon with Shelton Trucking says, "We watch it closely and make sure of the average prices. As a truck driver, we're trying to find the cheapest diesel prices as we can. Family is the most important thing out here. If they increase diesel prices, it could put some of us truckers out of business." The bigger problem is, if an individual trucking company does not increase how much it pays truckers per load, the trucker is out that extra money. Paying more for the same job will only hurt truckers trying to make ends meet. The average price of unleaded gas locally is around $2.75. According to GAS-Buddy, Sam's Club on Dick Wilson Blvd near Capital Cir SE has the cheapest gas at $2.73. |
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