Raw video: Penguins arriving at Moody Gardens

INDIANAPOLIS  -- The Indianapolis Zoo is reviewing its hiring policies after learning that the driver of a truck that crashed along a Texas highway, killing four of the zoo’s penguins, did not have a commercial driver’s license.

KHOU-TV

These were the penguins before they left on their trip.

Texas Highway Patrol Trooper Richard Buchanan also said the leased truck’s registered weight was 33,000 pounds—well above the limit allowed in Texas or Indiana for a driver without a commercial license.

Troopers had warned driver Kelly Hodge about the violation but did not cite her following the Aug. 8 crash, Buchanan said.

Hodge was cited for failing to stay in one lane and failing to maintain a log book that records hours spent behind the wheel, as required of all long-haul truck drivers.

Judith Gagen, a zoo spokeswoman, confirmed that Hodge did not have a commercial license. Gagen said the zoo was reviewing its policies in the crash’s aftermath, including questions about whether Hodge should have been commercially licensed.

Hodge and fellow zoo employee Tammy Root were sharing driving duties on the trip. Root also did not have a commercial license, though Gagen said the women had experience driving big rigs.

Both suffered minor injuries in the crash.

Earlier this week, the animal rights group PETA called for an investigation of the accident and the creation of procedures to ensure animal safety during transport.

The penguins were being moved to Galveston’s Moody Gardens, which had agreed to keep them temporarily while their enclosure is renovated at the Indianapolis Zoo. The truck veered off the road as Hodge tried to retrieve directions that had fallen onto the floorboard, Buchanan said.

One penguin died in the crash, and three others were killed after being struck by passing vehicles. Nearly 20 other penguins were not hurt, and an octopus and at least 90 percent of the fish on-board also survived.

All are in quarantine at Moody Gardens, with the octopus already on exhibit.