Truck driver recalls moments during I-55 crash
“Nightmare” is what Aaron Campo describes his tow truck yard in Metairie days after seeing a long stretch of mangled and burned cars, trucks and trailers along Interstate 55. “There were about a hundred cars, dozens of them on fire.” “At the same time you don’t know what to expect. It’s been crazy,” said Aaron Campeaux, owner of Aaron Campeaux Towing. Days after his team towed nearly 30 cars from the crash site, Campo began receiving calls from car owners. One of them in particular was looking for his wife’s diamond ring that had been left inside their car, which was now charred. While everything in the car caught fire, not a single valuable thing was burned. “It was his wife’s rosary, and he started crying,” Campo said. He counted his blessings not once but twice. “They found that their God was there with this rosary,” Campo said. One of the cars Campo towed belonged to a father and his 6-year-old son. We’re told their car collided with a truck that caught fire along I-55. They died at the scene from their injuries. “I’m so sorry what happened to him,” Campo said. While a portion of the southbound lanes have been opened, the northbound lanes remain completely closed. DOTD Communications Director Rodney Mallett says there’s no timeline for when that will happen. “We do not have a timeline for when these repairs will begin,” Campo said. “We are still trying to determine the exact needs.” Louisiana State Police sent this statement Friday afternoon: St. John the Baptist Parish – As the investigation into a multi-vehicle crash on I-55 progresses, troopers and forensic examiners have made significant progress. It has been determined that the accident tragically claimed the lives of seven (7) victims instead of the eight (8) victims initially reported. Due to the heavy fire and widespread debris, initial investigation led forces to believe there was a total number of casualties. Of (eight) victims. In collaboration with the St. John the Baptist Parish Coroner’s Office, the Jefferson Parish Coroner’s Office, and the Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services (FACES) Laboratory at LSU, it has been conclusively determined that there are no additional or unknown victims of this tragic accident other than others. More than seven (7) victims have been identified. Throughout this investigation, troops have received an invaluable amount of support from the community, who have provided countless amounts of footage and information. This assistance has greatly assisted the forces in developing the investigation. Additionally, the public is encouraged to use the Louisiana Department of Health’s Behavioral Health Resource Guide for all those affected by this tragic incident: https://ldh.la.gov/assets/oph/Coronavirus/resources/obh/Behavioral-Health-Immediate -Resources.pdf. This crash is still under investigation, and we will continue to update the public as it progresses. All updates will also be posted on the Louisiana State Police Facebook page.
“Nightmare” is what Aaron Campo describes his tow truck yard in Metairie days after seeing a long stretch of mangled and burned cars, trucks and tractor trailers along Interstate 55.
“This was a hundred cars, dozens of them on fire at the same time and you don’t know what to expect. It was just crazy,” said Aaron Campo, owner of Aaron Campo Tongue.
Days after his team towed nearly 30 cars from the accident site, Campo began receiving calls from car owners.
One of them in particular was looking for his wife’s diamond ring that had been left inside their car, which was now charred. While everything in the car caught fire, not a single valuable thing was burned.
“It was his wife’s rosary, and he started crying,” Campo said.
He counted his blessings not once but twice.
“They found that their God was there with that rosary,” Campo said.
One of the cars Campo tow belongs to a father and his 6-year-old son.
We’re told their car collided with a truck that caught fire along I-55.
They died at the scene of their injuries.
“I called my son’s mother and told my son I loved him, and I told him I loved him every day, but it hit home, this little boy didn’t deserve this, and I’m so sorry what happened to him,” Campo said.
While a portion of the southbound lanes have been opened, the northbound lanes remain completely closed.
DOTD Communications Director Rodney Mallett says there’s no timeline for when that will happen.
“We do not have a timeline for when these repairs will begin,” Campo said. “We are still trying to determine the exact needs.”
Louisiana State Police sent this statement Friday afternoon:
Parish of Saint John the Baptist – As the investigation into a multi-vehicle crash on I-55 progresses, troopers and forensic examiners have made significant progress. It has been determined that the accident tragically claimed the lives of seven (7) victims instead of the eight (8) victims initially reported.
Due to heavy fire and widespread debris, initial investigation led forces to believe there were a total of eight (8) casualties. In collaboration with the St. John the Baptist Parish Coroner’s Office, the Jefferson Parish Coroner’s Office, and the Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services (FACES) Laboratory at LSU, it has been conclusively determined that there are no additional or unknown victims of this tragic accident other than others. Of the seven (7) victims identified.
Throughout this investigation, troops have received an invaluable amount of support from the community, who have provided countless amounts of footage and information. This assistance greatly assisted the soldiers in developing the investigation.
Additionally, the public is encouraged to use the Louisiana Department of Health’s Behavioral Health Resource Guide for all those affected by this tragic incident: https://ldh.la.gov/assets/oph/Coronavirus/resources/obh/Behavioral-Health-Resources Instant.pdf.
This crash is still under investigation, and we will continue to update the public as it progresses. All updates will also be posted on the Louisiana State Police Facebook page.
