Tractor-trailer dumps estimated 60,000 pounds of beer on Florida interstate

OKALOOSA COUNTY, Fla. — There were plenty of open containers on a Florida interstate highway Wednesday morning.

A South Carolina truck driver spilled what the Florida Highway Patrol estimated to be 60,000 pounds of Busch beer onto I-10 when he lost control of his tractor-trailer and the vehicle overturned, WEAR reported.

According to a Florida Highway Patrol release, Michael Nolan Powell, 44, of Simpsonville, South Carolina, was driving west on I-10 at 2:40 a.m. in Okaloosa County near the Florida Panhandle town of Holt when he failed to maintain his lane.

The tractor-trailer veered onto the north shoulder of the road on the passenger side, causing cases of Busch beer to be thrown from the vehicle, WEAR reported.

Powell sustained minor injuries and was cited for careless driving, according to the news release.

The potential beer buzz had several people buzzing on social media.

On the Facebook page of the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, several people who said they were truck drivers questioned the actual weight of the beer spilled.

“Bogus story,” wrote Jeff Richardson of Wimberley, Texas, “Weight limit is 80 thousand, (and) I doubt he had 60,000 pounds of beer.”

“Either it's bogus on the 60k or he was overweight,” another man posted.

“It’s actually my dad he was carrying around 45k,” posted Dennis Powell of Gray Court, South Carolina.

Either way, the vehicle’s load was lightened considerably. And police did not say if any of the beer was Busch Light.

Cox Media Group