Long haul

Truckers do the essential work of hauling goods

FIFE — Theron Wood stands in a fenced-in parking lot at the end of a narrow cul-de-sac not far from the Port of Tacoma. He’s watching a pair of forklift drivers load 32 tons of palm fat — 64,000 pounds in one-ton totes — on the back of a pair of flatbed trailers hooked up to his semi-tractor. The 25-year-old has been driving for a year as a professional driver for TL Trucking in Pasco, and the parking lot of Global Agri Trade is now a regular stop for him. But it’s a bit of a difficult stop. The street is narrow, short and poorly maintained — crumbling at the shoulders — and a tight fit for any big vehicle, much less a semi-truck pulling nearly 70 feet of trailers. “If I go any farther down that road,” Wood said as he neared the Global Agri Trade entrance, “I’ll need to call a tow truck to get out.” The forklift drivers do their work quickly and efficiently — the totes were lined up before Wood arrived — and make sure they are centered and balanced evenly on both the 40-foot front and 24-foot rear trailers. It’s illegal, in fact, to haul a lopsided load, Wood noted, as that makes a truck more difficult and dangerous to steer and stop. Altogether, Wood said his rig and loaded trailers weigh around 52 tons. That’s very close to the limit he’s allowed to haul.