Driver recounts tractor-trailer crash that left him dangling off Cross Bronx Expressway

BRONX (WABC) -- All lanes have reopened after an accident on the Cross Bronx Expressway left a tractor-trailer precariously hanging over the Sheridan Parkway in the Bronx Monday.

The crash happened in the westbound lanes just after noon and reportedly involved multiple cars.

"I was completely conscious the whole time and thanked God I was alive," said Pablo Lopez, the truck driver.

Not only is he alive, but the 55-year-old truck driver walked out of this harrowing accident with only seven staples in his head and a sore neck.

"I saw the cars behind me and I didn't want to crush them," Lopez said.

It was noontime on Memorial Day when the tractor-trailer crashed through the outer rails of the Cross Bronx Expressway westbound. The cab was left dangling over the edge. Amazingly, Lopez was able to crawl out and jump onto the Sheridan Parkway below.

"The tanks broken, I was drenched in oil. I have been a truck driver for 18 years and never had an accident like this," Lopez said.

As you can imagine, the accident left traffic on I-95 and the Sheridan paralyzed for hours, as holiday travelers found themselves going nowhere fast. It would take all day to lift the rig and re-open the roads.

As for the accident, Lopez tells Eyewitness News he was in the middle lane at the time. Police confirm his account that a black car hit his front wheel causing him to lose control.

"I never thought I was going to die. I don't drink or smoke or do anything. I was completely alert," Lopez said.