1973 Cessna 210L
S/N 21060051    N59051

The 794-hour private pilot made an uneventful emergency landing on a public highway following a reported loss of engine power due to fuel starvation. Several attempts were made by the pilot to have the aircraft placed on a flatbed trailer and recovered to a suitable airport; however, the width of the trailers available for recovery was too narrow to accommodate the airplane's main landing gear. After several failed attempts to recover the airplane by ground, the pilot elected to fill the fuel tanks with 15 gallons of fuel and, after coordination with local law enforcement, attempt to takeoff from the private highway. Vehicular traffic was stopped in preparation of the airplane's takeoff from the highway. During the takeoff roll from the highway, the airplane's right wing collided with a side mirror of an 18-wheel truck and then struck the rear of an emergency vehicle. The collision with the vehicles made the airplane turn sharply to the right into a ditch, subsequently impacting trees.
 

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows: