Harris County, TX — November 30, 2025, three firefighters were injured in an 18-wheeler accident just after 3:30 a.m. along Eastex Freeway.

According to authorities, a fire engine was positioned to block traffic on Eastex Freeway in the vicinity of Northpark Drive due to a previous crash when the accident took place.

Officials indicate that, for as yet unknown reasons, an 18-wheeler collided with the parked fire truck. Pictures of the scene which have been published in the news show that the front-end of the 18-wheeler had collided with the left side of the fire truck, leading to significant damage to both vehicles.

EMS transported four of the firefighters—Ben Abbott, Colbey Bailey, Jason Thompson, and one other—to local medical facilities in order to receive treatment. The injuries incurred by Abbott, Bailey, and Thompson were apparently serious; they were each admitted to the hospital for necessary treatment. The fourth victim was evaluated before being released, according to reports.

Additional details pertaining to this incident are not available at this point in time. The investigation is currently ongoing.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When an 18-wheeler slams into a parked fire truck—especially one clearly positioned to block traffic after a prior crash—the question isn’t just how this happened, but how it was even possible. Emergency vehicles don’t just appear in the roadway; they’re positioned deliberately, with flashing lights and high visibility, precisely to protect the scene and those working it. So how does a truck driver miss that?

At this point, we don’t know what the driver was doing in the moments before impact. But that’s the first thing investigators need to figure out. Was the driver distracted? Fatigued? Driving too fast for conditions? There’s a big difference between a driver who nods off behind the wheel and one who’s looking at a phone—but either scenario is only confirmed by pulling the driver’s cell phone records, cab camera footage, and ECM data.

The time of day also matters. This happened a little after 3:30 in the morning—a time when fatigue is a known hazard in trucking. In one well-known case, a commercial truck driver who had been awake for more than 28 hours rear-ended another vehicle on a highway in the early morning hours. Investigators found that the driver had violated hours-of-service rules, and the company’s monitoring practices were called into question. Crashes like that show just how dangerous it can be when fatigue goes unchecked behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound vehicle.

And we shouldn’t overlook the role of the trucking company. Do they train their drivers to respond to emergency scenes? Are they pushing unrealistic delivery schedules that lead to skipped rest breaks? These aren’t theoretical questions. They determine whether companies are actively working to prevent wrecks—or setting the stage for them.

Bottom line: an 18-wheeler hitting a fire truck isn’t just a coincidence. It’s a failure—somewhere—and the job now is to find out where and why it happened.

Key Takeaways:

• It’s unknown why the truck collided with the parked fire engine, but distraction, fatigue, or excessive speed are all plausible factors that need investigation.
• Cell phone records, cab cameras, and black box data will be key to understanding what the truck driver was doing before the crash.
• The 3:30 a.m. timing raises red flags about driver fatigue, a known contributor in many serious crashes.
• Real-world cases show what can happen when hours-of-service rules are violated and company oversight fails.
• Emergency vehicles are stationed to protect others—when they’re hit, it often signals a serious breakdown in awareness, training, or supervision.