(VIDEO) A semi-truck crashed this morning near Union Gap on Highway 97. The driver, from Portland, *walked away. Troopers with the Washington State Patrol say the 51 year old man was driving too fast northbound on Highway 97 when he took the off ramp to Main Street. As he took the curve, the semi rolled, pinning the driver upside down in the cab of the truck.
Firefighters say the had to first stabilize the big rig before they could start the extraction process. Crews also tell us there was a lot of material in the cab of the truck, making the process a little slower than normal.
"As you're cutting somebody out of a vehicle, you have to also understand that there could be further injuries that you can't see or there may be blood flow cut off, things like that," Yakima Fire Department P.I.O. Jeff Pfaff said. "So we want to make sure as we're cutting things that we're not causing further injury to the patient."
Rescue crews say they were shocked to see the victim walk away from the scene with nothing more than a few cuts and bruises. He told paramedics that he was okay and didn't want to go to the hospital, a very lucky man. However he will be ticketed for speeding.