Truckers mourn the death of Nathan Moody after I-95 bridge fire

Trucking, as described by people in the business, is inherently lonely and risky work, regardless of the cargo. It’s a physically taxing and sometimes thankless profession. But truckers say it’s fellow drivers, often strangers encountered at rest stops and loading stations, who create a sense of camaraderie with a chat or help at a loading dock.

It’s why Laura Sperratore, 49, a trucker and owner of Sperr’s Fuel & Heating in Delaware County, said the community is mourning the loss of Nathan Moody, even if, like her, they didn’t know him or deliver gas themselves.

“You always feel that kind of kinship with other drivers,” she said. “When you see another driver killed, it weighs on you. It makes you stop and think.”

Officials said Moody was negotiating a turn when he lost control of a tanker truck containing 8,500 gallons of gasoline. The load caught fire on an I-95 off-ramp and the flames quickly caused the bridge above to collapse. Moody’s death was deemed an accident by the Philadelphia medical examiner; the cause was blunt trauma of head and inhalation and thermal injuries.

In trucking Pennsylvania Facebook groups and Reddit, drivers and truck enthusiasts from the Philly region and beyond have been writing poignant tributes, wishing him an afterlife of “single pallet loads, cheap fuel, no taxes, easy maintenance,” and no more calls from dispatchers.

Some wondered if Moody was ever one of those friendly faces they encountered on the road. Others couldn’t stop replaying video of the incident, trying to figure out what went wrong.

Mike Peak, 58, and a truck driver of 33 years, browsed these forums from his Franklin County home to learn more about Moody. Through news coverage, drivers learned Moody started working for Pennsauken-based TK Transport Inc. several years ago. They learned about his family and that he lived in New Jersey.

Like so many people in the comments, Peak could only hope Moody didn’t suffer.

“It bothers everybody that’s involved in the trucking community,” said Peak, who does local pickup and delivery — think those FedEx trucks — in Franklin County, in south-central Pennsylvania. “Even though we’re all competitors, we all get along.”

Peak likened driving to playing professional baseball or hockey. Sure, drivers are often working for competing interests, but it’s no hard feelings. Shooting the breeze at a rest stop is akin to the ritual of shaking hands after a match.

Joseph Reiber, 58 and a trucker of 39 years, said there are so many experiences only other truck drivers can understand, like how driving has led to a pinched nerve in the neck, four knee surgeries, and three shoulder surgeries.

Or how there’s no such thing as easy cargo.

Every load requires thought. Reiber’s cargo ranges from glass and soda to giant rolls of paper, each presenting its own challenges. Take paper. Reiber said the rolls can shift when negotiating turns, and drivers have to adjust their maneuvering for that.

What’s more, drivers are often covering wide swaths of roads of varying conditions in all sorts of weather.

In rural areas, fog can be a challenge to navigate in the winter, as is early nightfall. Traversing major metros often means dealing with more traffic and distracted commuters, trying to weave through traffic, and sometimes cutting off trucks to inch closer to their destinations.

“I’ve been over 2 million miles, I got a seven-year safe-driving record, and sometimes I’m petrified to go out,” said Reiber, whose family texts whenever they see a news report of an overturned truck on the Mid-Atlantic roads he drives on.

A father of five, Reiber can’t help but think of the 7-year-old daughter Moody leaves behind. A relative of Moody’s told The Inquirer that Moody switched to short-distance supply runs so he could spend more time with her.

For now, drivers say they’ve found the best way to cope with the loss of Moody is to offer a prayer.

“But for the grace of God, that could have been me,” said Sperratore.