TZB: Suspension failure caused truck crash, 4-hour jam

A mechanical failure on a northbound tractor-trailer on the Tappan Zee Bridge caused the truck to roll over, sending the trailer careening into the center barrier and strewing scrap metal debris across the span during Friday's morning rush hour. The northbound side of the bridge was closed for more than four hours.

The wreck happened just north of the toll barrier shortly before 9 a.m. It significantly displaced the center cement barrier, pushing it into a southbound lane.

The accident sent New York state road crews feverishly scrambling to clean up hundreds of pounds of scrap metal scattered across multiple lanes of the bridge. For a while, the bridge was closed in both directions before enough debris was cleaned up to allow vehicles to travel in two southbound lanes.

WATCH: YouTube's Dash-cam footage of TZB accident

The truck driver was not injured, authorities said.

Jennifer Givner, director of communications for the Thruway Authority, said the bridge resumed its "normal afternoon" traffic pattern of four lanes open northbound and three lanes open southbound shortly after 1:30 p.m. Givner said the cleanup had to be meticulous because the Thruway Authority didn't want the chance any metal left behind could damage cars and tires.

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Police said the crash was apparently triggered when the truck's suspension system broke, sending the trailer out of control before it slammed into the bridge's center barrier. At least five other vehicles were hit by debris, but all of the damage to them was minor.

"It's a surprise the (tractor) driver wasn't injured," said state Trooper John Finaro. "He must have been buckled in tight."

Finaro said there were no criminal charges expected in the case, but police were still assessing whether the driver would face any traffic citations.

Fredo Weiland, who was driving south on the bridge when the crash occurred near him, said: “It was like a scene out of a movie.”

Weiland, a longtime Mamaroneck resident who now lives in Ohio, said he passed the overturned trailer about five seconds after it flipped, sending metal debris over the center barrier.

“All that stuff was flying toward us,” he said. “Just a bunch of stuff across the roadway. It wasn’t pretty where I was.”

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Weiland said his car was not hit by debris, though he thinks he drove over a tailpipe as he slowly passed the scene. Drivers quickly moved out of the left southbound lane into the middle and right lanes as debris flew toward them, he said.

“People were pretty careful, knowing that everybody else was trying to get out of the way,” he said.

Twitter: @MattSpillane