Truckers Hurt in College Township Crash; Rig Carried Cheese Puffs, Snack Mix

Two truckers were taken to area hospitals Tuesday evening after the tractor-trailer-rollover wreck on the Mount Nittany Expressway, a State College crash report shows.

The driver, identified as Sergey Yakolev, 49, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was taken by Centre LifeLink to Mount Nittany Medical Center with what appear to be minor injuries. The passenger, identified as Valery Aksevnov, 39, was transported to Altoona Regional with a concussion, abdominal bleeding and other injuries, according to the report.

Both men work for the Illinois-based Mako Lines Inc. trucking company, which owns the Volvo tractor-trailer that wrecked about 7 p.m. Tuesday, police said. It happened near the Branch Road overpass in College Township, between the expressway’s East College Avenue and Boalsburg exits.

The crash’s cause remained under investigation Wednesday, but police confirmed earlier reports that the rig had been carrying a light load: It was hauling cheese puffs and snack mix, State College police Lt. Chris Fishel said.

According to witness accounts, the truck had been westbound when it apparently failed to negotiate a curve, crashing through guardrails and a median area. It ended up in the eastbound lanes, where it rolled over and slid to a stop, witnesses told police.

Traffic was snarled briefly as emergency responders worked at the scene. About 50 gallons of diesel fuel was spilled in the incident, police said.

Yakolev later told police that the road, wet from rainfall, had been slick, the crash report shows. He said that the truck’s steering went out of control, according to the report.

A witness said that Yakolev did not appear to be speeding at the time of the crash, the report notes. The posted speed limit there is 55 mph.

Earlier coverage

• PHOTOS: Tractor-Trailer Flips on Mount Nittany Expressway (Sept. 27, 2011)