Upset over the rising cost of fuel, about 50 coal truck drivers parked
their rigs along Highway 80 in Hazard, KY, on Wednesday, Sept. 7.
According to news reports, the drivers claim they simply aren’t making
enough to cover the skyrocketing cost of fuel.
One of the drivers, Tim Reid, an OOIDA member from Beaver Dam, KY, told
local television station WKYT that he pays as much as $500 a day on fuel alone.
“Where we haul from, dumping and going back to get a load is right at
$52 a load in fuel,” he said. “Plus our drivers pay anywhere from $35-$40, and
that’s right at $90 a load.”
Meanwhile, trucks at Forrester Joseph Trucking Co., a coal hauler in
the area, were vandalized on Sept. 7. Seven trucks were vandalized, two were
shot at, and the oil from three others was completely drained.
Police have not yet determined if there is a link between the vandalism
and the strike.
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