VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The body of a man who drove a tractor-trailer over the side of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (CBBT) Thursday has been recovered, bridge officials said Friday afternoon.
He was identified as Christopher A. Scott, 36, of Henrico, Virginia, and the truck he was operating was owned by Keep It Moving 22, LLC, a CBBT release confirmed.
Scott’s mother spoke with a reporter from Richmond station WWBT off camera, who told him her son had a big heart and would try to help everyone.
He has three children, one of which was born on Friday.
His loved ones say his girlfriend went into labor just hours after the crash.
Scott’s mom said her heart aches, knowing her baby will never get to hold his newborn son.
A Portsmouth-based diving company located Scott's body inside the truck, and both were successfully recovered from the Chesapeake Bay around 3 p.m. Friday, according to the release.
“The thoughts and prayers of everyone at the CBBT are with the family and loved ones of Mr. Scott during this difficult time,” said Jeff Holland, Executive Director of the CBBT, said in the release.
The crash happened Thursday just before 2 p.m. at the one-mile point. Officials said the truck went into the water on the west side of the northbound span, between Virginia Beach and the southernmost island.
READ MORE | Coast Guard searches for 1 person after tractor-trailer drives off Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Several agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard, Virginia Beach police and fire departments and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, quickly joined CBBT Police in search and recovery efforts that continued overnight and into the morning.
The operation utilized Coast Guard cutters, dive teams, helicopters and a mobile command post at Chic's Beach in Virginia Beach.
U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Jennifer Stockwell, who is serving as the incident commander, said Friday morning that the truck was believed to be transporting landscaping supplies, which could explain the small trees that washed up on nearby beaches Thursday.
Recovering tractor-trailer was 'more problematic than usual'
As of Friday morning, the truck was still in the water, wedged between the northbound and southbound spans of the bridge tunnel.
The truck's location, as well as thunderstorms and changes in the tide, made the process of recovering the vehicle particularly difficult, according to Thomas Anderson, deputy executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel District.
Divers had to hook equipment to the truck, drag it out from between the bridge tunnel and then lift it up onto a barge. During that process, part of the truck's trailer broke apart, Anderson said.
The trailer came out first, and then crews were able to pull the truck's cabin out, which is when they were able to verify the driver was inside, he said.
There are still a few pieces of the vehicle on the bay floor that divers are working to recover. Anderson said the tractor-trailer will be taken to Crofton Diving Co.'s yard in Portsmouth, where they will inspect the truck for possible malfunctions.
Tractor-trailer goes off the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Tractor-trailer crash investigation could take weeks or months
The cause of the crash is still undetermined, according to CBBT Police, which is the agency overseeing the investigation.
Reconstructing the accident and determining a cause "is fairly complicated and will take quite a bit of time," Anderson said.
In witness statements, CBBT Police received reports of a tire popping on the tractor-trailer before it crashed, but that’s not yet verified, Anderson said.
Investigators will check the driver's cell phone records to see if he was texting or on the phone at the time of the crash, and an autopsy will determine if medical issues, alcohol or drugs were a factor. Anderson said there's no evidence right now to suggest any of those things were the case, but investigators will go through all the steps, which could take several weeks if not a couple of months.
Repairs to Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel expected to take about a week
CBBT officials also said Friday that one lane on the northbound span of the bridge tunnel remained closed around the crash site as maintenance crews fix the damage.
Anderson said the crash caused a significant amount of concrete curb damage, but crews will have to wait until stormy weather has passed to lay concrete.
They also need to install a new guardrail. Those repairs are expected to take approximately a week.
Thursday not the first tractor-trailer to crash off CBBT
This is at least the sixth time in recent years that a large truck has crashed over the side of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Similar incidents happened in 2020, 2018, 2017, 2016 and 2014.
When asked about safety concerns people may have over driving across the bridge tunnel, Anderson said that statistically, it's "one of the safest pieces of road that you can drive on."
He said the CBBT uses the national traffic safety standards issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to measure safety.
"For instance, they have a statistic about the number of accidents involving personal injury that occur per every 100 million miles traveled, and the rate on the CBBT is about one-eighth of what the national rate is," Anderson said.
"They also do a statistic in regards to the number of fatal accidents per every 100 million miles traveled, and our rate is about half of what you see on a typical highway."