Lumber Truck Overturns Into 'Massive' El Camino Real Work Site

MENLO PARK, CA — A truck driver was injured when his 53-foot truck loaded with lumber overturned this week at a "massive" Menlo Park residential construction site, fire officials said. Menlo Park Fire Protection District firefighters were called at 7:11 a.m. Tuesday by someone who said a big-rig overturned at the Station 1300 project at 1300 El Camino Real.

"The massive, four story, 183 apartment complex is currently still finishing its multi-level and podium style underground 1000 parking space area," Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman said in a statement. "The driver of the truck... entered from the Oak Grove side of the project and the tractor and fully loaded trailer somehow rolled off the earthen ramp and into the construction site narrowly missing sliding even further into the already completed basement areas."

The driver was able to get out but he was treated for back and shoulder injuries before being taken to Stanford Hospital. Fire officials said it is fortunate the truck, owned by Channel Lumber, did not slide any further into a the basement area.

"Given the dynamics of a busy sub-surface construction site, we feel fortunate that no one else was injured and that the truck didn't end up sliding further into the basement, or a sea of reinforcing steel rebar, which could have been catastrophic," Schapelhouman.

Firefighters also secured a diesel fuel tank on the truck, which had started leaking after the truck overturned.

Schapelhouman said the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health has been notified of the accident.

— Images courtesy Menlo Fire Battalion 1 / Bay City News Service contributed to this report