Good morning and welcome to the National Transportation Safety Board.
We’re back in the virtual world for this meeting and the next several as our Board Room gets some much-needed “TLC.”
I’m Jennifer Homendy and it’s an honor to serve as Chair of the NTSB. With me today are my Board colleagues Member Michael Graham and Member Tom Chapman. Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg is unable to join us today, but his views have been incorporated in the draft report.
Today’s meeting is open to the public, in accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act.
This morning, we’ll deliberate the final investigation report of a multivehicle collision that occurred in Phoenix, Arizona, on the evening of June 9, 2021.
A tank truck hauling milk, operated by Arizona Milk Transport, was traveling eastbound on State Route 202 when it crashed into a queue of passenger vehicles that were stopped due to a road closure. The crash initiated a series of collisions that involved six other passenger vehicles.
I’ll let the staff get into the details of the crash.
The impacts are devastating and heartbreaking. Four of the passenger vehicle occupants died — two drivers and two passengers. Eleven others were injured, including a six-year-old child.
I’d like to take a moment to address those personally affected by this crash.
On behalf of the entire agency, please accept our sincerest condolences for all you’ve been through. I imagine today is a tough day. We’re truly sorry for your pain, whether you lost a loved one that day or were injured in any way — physically or mentally. Though we can’t alleviate your suffering, we will do everything in our power to strengthen safety, so this never happens again.
Each Board Member has studied the draft report and met individually with the investigative team, but this is the first time we’ve gathered as a Board to discuss the report.
In a moment, the NTSB investigative team will walk us through the events in detail and show an animation of the complex crash sequence. NTSB staff will present the pertinent facts and analysis and summarize their findings.
After their presentations, Board Members will question staff on the key safety issues uncovered during the investigation. These include:
- The motor carrier’s safety culture.
- Driver fatigue and the agricultural hours-of-service exemption.
- Prioritization of messages displayed on dynamic message signs.
- Occupant protection.
- Collision-avoidance technology.
Staff will then propose the relevant findings, probable cause, and safety recommendations for Board consideration.
Following the incorporation of any amendments voted on today, the final report will be available on our website in a few weeks.
The public docket for this investigation was released on February 22, 2023, and contains over 1,800 pages of additional relevant material. It’s available on our website at NTSB.gov.
Before we begin, I’d like to thank the Arizona Department of Public Safety for their collaboration with us on-scene and acknowledge the following groups that served as parties to our investigation. While they’re not part of the analysis, parties are crucial in helping us develop the facts around an investigation.
In addition to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the parties to this investigation were the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Daimler Trucks North America LLC, and United Dairymen of Arizona.
I’d also like to thank our colleagues in the Office of Highway Safety and throughout the NTSB for their hard work on this investigation and in putting together this draft report, proposed findings, probable cause, and safety recommendations.
I’ll now ask Deputy Managing Director for Investigations Brian Curtis to introduce members of the NTSB team participating in today’s meeting. Good morning, Mr. Curtis.
