Jefferson City is suing a tractor-trailer driver and several companies for more than $425,000 after a fallen power line ruined a fire truck in September of 2023.
According to court documents, driver Trevor Winholt’s nine-ton tractor-trailer struck the utility line, causing the line to crash on a parked fire truck, subjecting it to “high-voltage electrical power” for more than 20 minutes.
The fire truck was ruined, and Jefferson City’s Fire Department replaced it at a cost of $1.3 million. Now, the city seeks to recoup some of the cost by suing Winholt, his employer and the power line’s owners.
Filings submitted on behalf of Jefferson City by Nicholas Purifoy of Lauber Municipal Law allege Winholt ignored signs forbidding “large trucks” before the accident. City ordinances classify these as any vehicle weighing more than nine tons, which Winholt’s was at the time.
In addition to Winholt, the city is also suing his employers, R&L Carriers Shared Services and R&L Carriers Inc. It claims R&L “negligently and carelessly” made Winholt drive the truck in violation of federal law.
Those affiliated with the truck aren’t the only ones named in the lawsuit; the power line’s owners are included as well. These include Ameren, Mediacom and Lumen Technologies.
Jefferson City’s lawyers claim the power line hung under a minimum height of 15.5 feet set by the National Electric Safety Code. Winholt’s truck was less than 14 feet tall.
Court proceedings will take place in Cole County, but no hearing dates were publicly available as of Friday afternoon.
