The holiday weekend that so many in Western Pennsylvania looked forward to, ended in tragedy for two individuals travelling in a road in Berlin Township. The crash, which occurred before midnight on Route 534, involved two trucks, a tractor trailer and a smaller Freightliner straight truck. The collision left the two occupants of the latter truck dead.

The cause of the truck accident appears to be movements the Freightliner truck took. As it travelled south on the road something apparently happened to cause it to leave the road. As the driver of the vehicle attempted to get back on the road reportedly over-corrected and crossed the centerline. When it did so, it collided with the tractor trailer.

The force of the impact caused both trucks to burst into flames. The driver of the tractor trailer was apparently able to get out of the cab. Though the nature and extent of his injuries is not known, he was transported to an area hospital for treatment. The two individuals who died were trapped in the Freightliner truck and died before they could be transported for treatment.

At this point it is not clear what caused the Freightliner to leave the road. Due to the time of day the crash occurred, it is possible that the individual driving that vehicle could have momentarily drifted off to sleep and upon awaking tried to get the vehicle back on the road. Whether that, or something else, was the reason for the crash will likely be uncovered in the course of an investigation into the matter.

Source: WFMJ, "Two dead after overnight crash in Berlin Township," Leah Fry, May 28, 2013