A truck driver’s fatigue — exacerbated by his decision to drive 12 hours to work before he even started his 14-hour shift — is the probable cause of the June 2014 crash that killed comedian James McNair and seriously injured comedian Tracy Morgan in New Jersey, federal officials said Tuesday.
Contributing to the severity of the injuries, the National Transportation Safety Board said, was the failure by McNair, Morgan and their fellow passengers in a limo van to use seat belts and properly adjusted head restraints.
A Walmart truck driven by Kevin Roper rear-ended the limo van, which was carrying seven people, shortly before 1 a.m. on the New Jersey Turnpike on June 7, 2014.
The crash killed McNair — known as “Jimmy Mack” — and seriously injured four other passengers, including former “Saturday Night Live” performer Morgan, who was left with a brain injury.