The smell of wine filled the 96-degree air at the intersection
of highways 101 and 25 Monday after a tanker truck carrying 6,600
gallons of chardonnay overturned just south of Gilroy.
GILROY –– The smell of wine filled the 96-degree air at the intersection of highways 101 and 25 Monday after a tanker truck carrying 6,600 gallons of chardonnay overturned just south of Gilroy.
The truck blocked all three northbound lanes on 101 for six hours, from about 10:30 a.m. to 4:25 p.m. Thousands of cars and trucks were backed up at least eight miles south to the Highway 156 exit near San Juan Bautista, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Truck driver Geraldo Vita, 27, of Stockton, was unconscious when emergency workers arrived on the scene but regained consciousness before being flown to San Jose Medical Center. Hospital officials listed him in fair condition several hours later. Vita works for Cherokee Freight Lines of Stockton.
“He’s in a lot of pain, but he’s OK,” said a Cherokee employee who asked not to be named. “They were going to keep him overnight (in the hospital).”
Vita was hauling the wine from Blossom Hill Winery in Paicines, south of Hollister, to Sonoma for bottling.
“Obviously, our thoughts and concerns are for the driver and his family,” said Tom Scott, spokesman for Blossom Hill’s parent company, Diageo. “We certainly hope for a safe and speedy recovery for him.”
Diageo is one of the world’s largest producers of alcoholic beverages. Its other wine labels include Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards, and its liquor brands include Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Baileys, J&B, Captain Morgan, Cuervo and Tanqueray.
The truck rolled onto its side after making the turn from Highway 25 onto northbound U.S. 101. A witness told officers the truck was going about 25 mph when it tipped, CHP spokeswoman Terry Mayes said.
As wine leaked from the tanker trailer’s domed lid, diesel fuel and oil leaked from the cab. Firefighters were on hand from the California Department of Forestry and the Santa Clara County Fire Department, but there was no fire.
Tow trucks tried to move the tanker full of wine but failed; Mayes said the tow trucks began to tip instead. Emergency workers therefore had to wait until a second tanker arrived from Stockton.
Pumping the wine from one tanker to the other was slow at first, due to the position of the damaged tanker. Workers cut a hole in it to allow air intake into the truck, but progress was still slow until workers cut a larger hole.
Some people suggested letting the wine drain onto the ground, Mayes said, but this would have violated pollution laws.
Meanwhile, a dust cloud rose as officers diverted traffic through the parking lot of the Garlic Shoppe, down a dirt farm road and back onto 101 north of the wreckage.
Looking south from the Highway 25 bridge, stalled northbound traffic on 101 stretched as far as the eye could see.
The gridlock, combined with the record heat, caused problems among the line of cars stuck in traffic. A 4-month-old child and an elderly woman showed heat exhaustion symptoms during the long delay, and both were taken by ambulance to Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy for treatment.
The infant had been sitting in a car with no air conditioning but was moved to a nearby pickup truck with air conditioning before emergency workers arrived.
The traffic jam, along with the probable influence of alcohol, prompted Robert Slaughter, of Carmel, to pass cars on the shoulder at roughly 80 mph, witnesses said. CHP officers stopped Slaughter after he clipped the bumper of an “oversize load” truck. The big rig was stopped on the shoulder, and officers said Slaughter drove around it.
CHP officers arrested Slaughter on suspicion of hit-and-run and driving under the influence of alcohol. A breathalyzer test indicated his blood-alcohol content was “well over the legal limit,” Mayes said.
John Cruger, of Danville, was happy when he saw the officers put handcuffs on Slaughter. Cruger said Slaughter passed his car on the shoulder at 70 to 80 mph or more, kicking up rocks as he sped past.
“At least there’s some justice in the world,” Cruger said.
