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Fatal Tanker Truck Collision Shakes Alabama

by Jana Ritter - Published: 7/08/2015

Exactly a week after a tanker truck explosion did major damage in Ohio, an explosive head-on collision involving a fuel-tanker and a Honda has caused death and destruction in Pelham, Alabama. The crash occurred just before 7 a.m. Wednesday morning at an area near the border of Pelham and Chelsea on Highway 11 just north of Chatham Court. Since then continuous updates from the crash site have reported: 1 dead, 4 seriously injured, road closures, evacuations and power outages.  Another incident to go down in the dangers of trucking photo wall of fame. 

                                                  tanker truck fire Alabama

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According to the Pelham police, the driver of a Honda passenger vehicle is confirmed dead after crashing into the tanker truck carrying 9,000 gallons of gasoline. Both the Honda civic and the tanker truck were occupied by 2 people when the Honda crossed the median around 6:45 am and collided head-on with the fuel tanker. Police say the tanker truck driver tried to avoid hitting the Honda Civic but ended up crashing into a ravine and catching on fire.The driver of the Honda Civic died as a result of the injuries caused by the crash and the passenger of the Honda remains in serious condition. Police also report that the tanker truck driver is in critical condition suffering from major burns and the passenger of the tanker truck has minor injuries. "When the engine crew arrived, they found the collision, but also had a 9,000 gallon tanker involved with a fuel fire,” Pelham deputy chief Blair Sides said. “Basically, we had 30 foot flames going down a creek. Of course our main concern was the patients in the vehicle to make sure they were extricated."

                                                       Smoke from tanker truck fire

The emergency responders were forced to let the fuel leaked by the tanker truck burn out. The thick, black smoke from the flames could be seen from miles away down the highway. Some of the gasoline also leaked into a nearby creek and environmental crews were also called to scene to contain it. According to officials the drinking water will not be affected by the leak, but there is a lot of other damage to contend with in the meantime. Police say Highway 11 from just north of Chatham Court to Lakeview Methodist Church would be closed until later today and only people who live in the area would be allowed on the road. Authorities also evacuated six homes in the area as a precaution and Alabama Power crews have been working to restore power along Highway 11 after the accident caused local outages.The tanker truck was so badly damaged by the fire; it had to be removed from the scene in pieces by two different wreckers. The deadly heat of the fire also caused the siding of a nearby mobile home to melt right off.

                                                  tanker truck fire damage

Witnesses in the area of the crash scene reported hearing multiple explosions and knew immediately something terrible had happened. "We heard a big-old boom. It was louder than a gunshot. It was vibrating the windows in the house. We could feel it in our chest, too," said 14-year-old Lauren Bush.


Flory Tolino
Flory Tolino
Trucks run very hot today don't take much to catch fire
Kathy Jacoby
Kathy Jacoby
Prayers to all those involved.
Jennifer Black Cordero
Jennifer Black Cordero
Not to mention truck was hauling gasoline. .. was probably a spark that lit it up
Derek Madden
Derek Madden
People need to read the article. It was the Honda Civic that cause the accident.