'Probable cause' of Northeast Philly crash that led to I-95 collapse in 2023 was unsafe speed, NTSB says

The “probable cause” of the 2023 I-95 crash and overpass collapse in Northeast Philadelphia was the driver of the tanker truck failing to safely slow down on the exit ramp where the rollover and resulting explosion occurred — possibly because he was fatigued — the National Transportation Safety Board said in its final investigative report, made public Thursday.

Contributing to the severity of the fire was the driver’s failure to close a hatch — also possibly because he was fatigued — that allowed gasoline to spill out, the NTSB said. Surveillance video from three stops the driver made before the crash showed the hatch was improperly open, the agency said. The tanker was carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline.

Nathan Moody, 53, was killed in the early-morning June 11, 2023, crash on the Cottman Avenue off-ramp from northbound I-95 and the subsequent intense fire that led to the partial collapse of a bridge. A temporary fix allowed the bridge to be reopened in 12 days, and a full rebuild was completed less than a year later.

Moody, a Willow Grove resident, owned the truck and worked for Pennsauken-based gas-hauling company TK Transport Inc., an affiliate of Penn Tank Lines.

The NTSB said in its 24-page report dated March 19 that it had conducted a video analysis and determined that “the truck was traveling between 44 and 54 mph, which was well above the posted advisory speed limit of 25 mph.”

Tire marks on the exit ramp showed that “the rollover occurred as a result of the high speed at which the truck entered this curve,” the NTSB said.

An open hatch, called a “manhole cover,” on the tank “enabled gasoline to quickly spill throughout the environment, likely initiating the post-crash fire and enabling it to spread quickly,” the NTSB said.

Moody worked an overnight shift and then apparently reverted to a daytime schedule on his days off, and that could have contributed to fatigue, the NTSB said.

“The driver’s lack of alertness to the exit ramp advisory speed and loss of control of his vehicle suggest that he may have been fatigued when the crash occurred,” the NTSB said.

“His neglect of the task of securing the open manhole at the front of the cargo tank — despite being adjacent to it on multiple occasions while picking up and dropping off gasoline during his shift — also suggests potential fatigue,” the agency said.

The NTSB said a post-crash examination of evidence indicated that Moody was wearing his seat belt and was not texting or talking on his phone.

Moody did not have alcohol in his system. He did have a low level of diphenhydramine, which is used in allergy medication and has the potential to cause drowsiness, the NTSB said.

The agency said Moody began his shift around 10:41 p.m. June 10 when he picked up his trailer at a lot in Pennsauken belonging to TK Transport Inc.

His job was to pick up gasoline from a loading facility and then make a delivery at a convenience store. He did that twice — delivering gas to Wawas in Bucks and Montgomery Counties — and was completing his third drop-off to a Wawa on Oxford Avenue when the crash occurred.

In a section of the report describing “lessons learned,” the NTSB said that it was important to manage fatigue and that drivers should adopt sleep schedules that do not change substantially from their workdays to their days off.

Moody’s truck was not equipped with electronic stability control, which could have prevented the rollover, the NTSB said.