Guadalupe County, NM — June 1, 2025, one person was killed and two others were injured in a truck accident at about 5 a.m. on Interstate 40 west of Santa Rosa.

Authorities said a semi-truck was heading east near mile marker 267 when it overturned after leaving the road and overcorrecting. A second truck flipped while taking evasive action, and a third semi-truck crashed into the first one.

The driver of the third truck died after being transported to a local hospital, while the other two drivers were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to authorities. Their names have not been made public yet.

Authorities have not released any additional information about the Guadalupe County crash. The accident is still under investigation.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When people hear about a crash involving three semi-trucks — one overturning, another flipping to avoid it and a third slamming into the wreckage — the natural response is: How does something like this even happen? And perhaps more importantly: Could it have been prevented?

The short answer is that we don’t know yet, but that’s exactly why a thorough investigation is essential. We’re told the first truck left the road and overturned after overcorrecting, but what led to that in the first place? Was the driver drowsy or distracted? Was there a mechanical failure? Or was there something about the road conditions that contributed? None of those questions can be answered without examining the truck's onboard systems, such as the engine control module (ECM) and any in-cab cameras. If the driver was using a cell phone, that’ll show up in their phone records, but only if someone goes and gets them.

The second truck flipped while taking evasive action, which raises another set of questions. Was the maneuver necessary? Did it happen because the first truck was blocking the road in a way that left no other option? Or did the second driver overreact? And the third truck, did its driver have any warning before hitting the wreckage? Did the pile-up happen too fast for anyone to react, or were there missed opportunities to slow down or steer clear?

We also don’t yet know whether any of the companies involved followed proper hiring and training procedures. I’ve seen cases where a company hired a driver who’d been fired multiple times elsewhere, without doing more than a quick road test. If a trucking company puts someone on the road who doesn’t belong there, that’s not just a hiring mistake; it’s a factor that can lead directly to a fatal crash.

The bottom line is, crashes like this don’t happen in a vacuum. They happen because something, or several things, went wrong. Until investigators get answers from black box data, dash cam footage and maintenance logs, all we have are guesses. But if those records show signs of distraction, inexperience or equipment failure, then the blame may not fall solely on the driver of the first truck.

Key Takeaways:

• It’s still unclear what caused the first truck to leave the road and overturn; answers may lie in black box data or phone records.
• The second truck’s evasive maneuver and subsequent rollover raise questions about road conditions, driver reactions and visibility.
• The third truck's impact highlights the need to understand how quickly the situation unfolded and whether proper warnings were possible.
• Evidence from onboard systems, hiring practices and driver training protocols will be essential to determine accountability.
• Without a thorough investigation, it’s impossible to know whether this crash was due to human error, equipment failure or something else entirely.