FMCSA Orders DND International to Shut Down

WASHINGTON, April 2, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has ordered DND International, Inc., USDOT No. 1434005, to immediately shut down after declaring the Naperville, Illinois-based trucking company to be an imminent hazard to public safety.  FMCSA investigators found the carrier had committed widespread, serious violations of federal regulations that protect the safety of the motoring public.  DND International's compliance with federal safety regulations has been the focus of an intensive FMCSA investigation that began immediately following a Jan. 27 crash that killed an Illinois Tollway worker and seriously injured an Illinois State Police trooper.

"Federal rules limiting the hours that commercial truck and bus drivers can be on the job serve to protect everyone traveling on our highways and roads," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.  "Companies that sidestep and disregard these regulations and needlessly expose the motoring public to harm will not be allowed to operate."

Federal safety regulations prohibit commercial truck drivers from driving for more than 11 hours each shift and/or remaining on duty after 14 hours of work.  Motor carriers and their drivers are also required to retain supporting documentation such as receipts for tolls and fuel purchases.

"After the horrible tragedy on I-88 earlier this year, I asked for a thorough investigation of DND International so that we could get to the bottom of the incident," said U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (Ill.).  "The investigation confirmed my suspicions that the problems with this trucking company are putting travelers at risk every day.  I am happy that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration took swift action to take these trucks off the road.  This type of strong and vigorous oversight must continue in order to make certain we are doing everything possible to prevent this kind of dangerous driving behavior."

A driver for DND International, charged with multiple felony violations by state law enforcement personnel in connection with the Jan. 27 crash, was banned from operating a commercial motor vehicle in interstate commerce on Feb. 11 following the first phase of an FMCSA investigation.  FMCSA investigators concluded that for a period of 26 hours during Jan. 26-27, the driver operated a tractor-trailer for approximately 1,000 miles, only resting between 3-1/2 to 5-1/2 hours – well short of the federally required rest period.  Before reaching his last scheduled stop, the truck driver crashed into two fully illuminated stationary vehicles, an Illinois State Police car with its emergency lights activated and an Illinois Tollway vehicle with an activated warning arrow, outside of Naperville, Ill., causing the fatality and life-threatening injury.

During the second phase of the investigation into the operations of DND International, FMCSA investigators compared toll transaction data with a sample of hours-of-service records from seven drivers.  In all seven instances, drivers had falsified their records.  The investigation revealed an unmistakable, dangerous pattern of serious falsifications that substantially increase the likelihood of serious injury or death to DND International drivers and the motoring public.

"The constant focus of every driver, particularly operators of very large commercial vehicles, must be on safety," said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro.  "Companies and commercial drivers that knowingly jeopardize public safety by disregarding common-sense regulations that prevent driver fatigue will not be tolerated and will be banned from continuing their dangerous and illegal behavior."

Today's order directs DND International to cease all commercial motor vehicle operations, including all interstate and intrastate transportation, from all dispatching locations or terminals.

Thus far in 2014, FMCSA has revoked the operating authority of more than 75 unsafe bus and truck companies.  A total of nine motor carriers and four commercial drivers have been declared to be imminent hazards to public safety.

A copy of the DND International imminent hazard out-of-service order is available at:

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov

Information on the imminent hazard out-of-service order issued to the DND International driver is available here:

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/newsroom/us-department-transportation-declares-illinois-long-haul-truck-driver-be-imminent-hazard-0

SOURCE Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration