The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (CBBT) connects Hampton Roads to Virginia's Eastern Shore, with over 17 miles of road allowing drivers to travel across the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.
Over the years, WTKR News 3 has covered a number of major incidents that have taken place across the CBBT. The most recent being the Purdue Truck that fell overboard in a single-vehicle crash Sunday morning, leaving a 61-year-old driver dead:
2026
Feb. 15 — Officials with the CBBT shared Sunday evening that the driver has been identified as 61-year-old Ronnie Andrews of Robersonville, North Carolina.
The single-vehicle crash happened around 6:30 a.m. near the North Channel Bridge on the southbound span, just south of Fisherman Island. The tractor-trailer went over the west side of the bridge.
The cause of the crash is under investigation, CBBT officials said, adding that weather was not a factor given low winds, no rain, and "fair visibility."
2023
June 22 — A tractor-trailer struck a curb and blew a tire before crashing through a guardrail on the CBBT, according to a crash report from the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.
U.S. Coast Guard officials confirmed that the driver of the tractor-trailer, Christopher A. Scott, 36, of Henrico, Virginia, was the only one inside the vehicle. His body was recovered from the water on June 23.
The report did not say what caused the truck to hit the curb prior to the crash.
2020
Dec. 29 — A two-axle, six-tire box truck went over the guard rail into the water while traveling northbound on the CBBT.
The truck went over the rail into the water the east side of the northbound span between North Channel Bridge and the northernmost island, Virginia Beach officials said. Witnesses reported seeing the 47-year-old driver, Erik Mezick, exit the tractor trailer and drift west in the water, according to officials
Coast Guard crews searched approximately 178 square miles with multiple crews and assets from Coast Guard Station Cape Charles, the Coast Guard Cutter Hawk, and Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C.
The driver's body was recovered on an Outer Banks beach between the villages of Salvo and Avon on April 9, 2021.
2018
July 27 — A van and tractor-trailer collided around 6:30 p.m. near mile marker 12 southbound. The tractor-trailer went overboard, resulting in the driver and a passenger dying.
Those who died in the crash are Christopher Fenner, 29, and Jervone Rakeem Hall, 32, according to CBBT officials.
The bridge had a posted speed limit of 35 mph due to heavy rains at the time of the crash. Four people were in the van during the crash. They were all treated and released from the scene.
2017
Feb. 9 — A tractor-trailer driver died while en route to the hospital after being recovered from an overboard crash, according to a CBBT spokesperson.
The tractor-trailer had been submerged two miles away from the bridge. Virginia Beach Police and Virginia Beach Fire were unable to respond to the incident due to sea conditions.
The driver has been identified by CBBT officials as 47-year-old Joseph Chen from Greenville, North Carolina.
Due to winds being in excess of 40 miles per hour, the CBBT had been operating with level one wind restrictions.
2016
Jan. 6 — A driver was rescued from the waters after a tractor-trailer hauling soybeans for Coastal Ag Transport crashed off the CBBT.
The Coast Guard and the Virginia Beach Marine Patrol pulled the 33-year-old driver from the water conscious and alive.
2014
May 15 — A tractor-trailer collided into a maintenance truck before jack-knifing and crashing into the water.
The tractor-trailer crashed into one of the maintenance trucks, as well as a light pole, police say. It then went over the railing and into the water.
45-year-old Daawuud Z. Hakim, employed as a contract driver by Big Daddy Drayage, was identified as the driver killed in the crash.
The driver of the tractor trailer was "too entangled" in the wreckage to be saved, according to Amy Valdez of the Virginia Beach Fire Department.
Due to its long span, travel advisories are common for the CBBT amid high winds and dangerous weather conditions. Although these factors are not always cited as the reason for major crashes on the CBBT.
- Wind advisory: Winds at 35 miles per hour. Passing prohibited; speed limit reduced to 45 mph.
- Level 1: Winds at 40 miles per hour. Previous passing/speed limit restrictions apply.
- Restricted vehicles: Motorcycles, large pick-up campers, camper trailers, house trailers, anything being towed, vehicles with exterior cargo that may become unsecured due to high winds, six-wheel trucks; such as moving vans, rental trucks, box trucks, buses and empty tractor-trailers with less than 15,000 pounds of cargo.
- Level 2: Winds at 50 miles per hour. Previous passing/speed limit restrictions apply.
- Only vehicles allowed to cross: Cars without exterior cargo, pick-up trucks (to include 2-axle, 6 wheels) without cargo, mini-vans, vans not to include high-profile/conversion vans and SUVs.
- Level 3: Winds at 60+ miles per hour. Closed to all traffic.
