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The accident occurred after John Collett, 32, of Wallingford, dropped off a Dumpster at the McDonald's on the Post Road traffic circle and merged onto I-95 at North Benson Road at about 10 a.m., the Connecticut Post said.
Witnesses told police that the arms of the roll-off truck, registered to John's Refuse & Recycling of Northford, were in an upright position and hit the Meadowbrook Road overpass near Exit 23, ripping off the top of the truck, the Post said.
The truck rolled onto its side and the highway guard rail pierced the vehicle, said Assistant Chief George Gomola, the incident commander.
"I have never seen steel guard rail wrapped around inside a vehicle like it had in this incident," Gomola said. "This was a very difficult extrication that resolved quite quickly due to high level of training and professionalism demonstrated by our firefighters."
Collett, who was unconscious and unresponsive, was freed by Fairfield firefighters and transported to Bridgeport Hospital, where he was admitted in very critical condition and later died. Firefighters had to use heavy rescue equipment to cut the roof off the truck and the guard rail pinning him inside the vehicle, Gomola said.
"Fairfield firefighters did an amazing job of removing the driver from the wreckage in a safe and timely manner," he said.
The accident caused an 11-mile traffic backup all the way to Exit 13 in Norwalk for over three hours after the crash. It blocked two right lanes of I-95 northbound and closed Exit 23 in Fairfield. It also caused traffic delays along the Post Road in in town, Fairfield Police Chief Gary MacNamara said via Twitter.
State police were investigating the cause of the crash.
Read the full Connecticut Post story here.
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