Gasoline tanker erupts in flames after hitting power lines in Texas

The Handley Generating Station of Constellation Energy in Fort Worth, Texas on October 5, 2023. Photographer: Shelby Tauber/Bloomberg

FORT WORTH, Texas — A tanker truck in Texas hauling gasoline erupted into a fiery blaze Sunday after colliding with another vehicle and knocking over power lines, leaving the truck driver in critical condition, Fort Worth authorities said.

The 18-wheeler was carrying 9,000 gallons of gasoline that began leaking after the truck spun off the road near a gas station. The downed power lines then sparked a fire around 1 a.m., Fort Worth Fire Department spokesperson Craig Trojacek said.

“The driver of the 18-wheeler was trying to do everything he could to keep the gas from draining into the parking lot of the Valero gas station when it lit off,” Trojacek said.

The driver was hospitalized with burns, but no one else was injured, Trojacek said. Fire crews spent hours spraying the tanker with water and used sand to try and contain the gasoline, he said. Firefighters left the scene around 7 a.m.

Videos of the fire show what appears to be front of the truck engulfed in flames as plumes of smoke rise.

One witness, Bailey Moss, said he was staying with a friend nearby when he heard “a loud crash” and peered outside.

“The fire spread quickly, and you could feel the heat even from a distance. It was pretty intense,” Moss said.

Associated Press, The Associated Press