Clinton Fire Chief Hagan Thornton directs personnel and coordinates safety efforts at the scene of the accident Monday night.
Chuck Thompson | Sampson Independent
Crews work to extinguish flames Monday night, as an overturned semi truck burns on the bridge over the Great Coharie Creek, just outside of Clinton.
Chuck Thompson | Sampson Independent
Firefighters start to walk back behind the line, as the fire is put out and steam rises from the hot ashes of the tractor trailer accident.
Chuck Thompson | Sampson Independent
Debris is strewn across the bridge roadway at the wreck site, as firefighters work to secure the scene.
Chuck Thompson | Sampson Independent
A close-up view of the truck, owned by SSA Transport Corp., out of Moreno Valley, Calif., hauling meats for Smithfield Foods.
Chuck Thompson | Sampson Independent
From left, Clinton Fire Chief Hagan Thornton, back to the camera, briefs Clinton Mayor Lew Starling and Clinton City Manager James Duncan on the situation Monday night as crews continue to contain the scene and battle the blaze.
Chuck Thompson | Sampson Independent
A tractor-trailer hauling Smithfield meat overturned on a bridge across the Great Coharie Creek on N.C. 24 west around 8 p.m. Monday night, setting blaze to the semi truck and its cargo of pork shoulders bound for Texas.
Dozens of firefighters, EMS paramedics, and a multitude of law enforcement agencies responded to the scene just after 8 p.m., shutting down the westbound lanes of Highway 24 just west of Coharie Country Club near Bass Lake Road.
While the exact cause of the accident is still unclear, Clinton Fire Chief Hagan Thornton said for unknown reasons the driver veered off to the right, striking the guardrail, then hitting the wall of the bridge, turning on the driver’s side and skidding to a stop in the middle of the bridge, where it proceeded to burn, with fuel from the semi-truck’s tank leaking onto the bridge.
“The Highway Patrol will be the investigating agency,” noted Clinton Police Chief Anthony Davis at the scene Monday night.
Fire and rescue responded from different stations, including Clinton, Roseboro and Taylor’s Bridge.
Traffic began to back up in the westbound lane as the accident scene was cordoned off, and travelers were being redirected to turn around while the eastbound lane moved cautiously.
“My biggest concern is running out of water; we have an active fuel leak here and we need to make sure we have enough water,” Thornton said as he directed response efforts from both a radio and phone Monday night. Enough water was made available to carefully extinguish the situation within an hour of the accident.
By 9 p.m., the fire was out as steam continued to billow from the the burned truck cab. Against the lights shining on the truck ,it looked as if the 18-wheeler was still on fire, as firefighters and law enforcement secured the scene, and paramedics stood by ready to do their part if the situation took a turn.
Mayor Lew Starling and Clinton City Manager James Duncan were on the scene to access the situation and support the first responders.
“Thank goodness no one was seriously hurt,” said Mayor Starling. “There’s fuel, I’m told, potentially running in the river. A hazmat team has been called to get the fuel removed from the scene.
“We have the fire marshal here, the city manager, the fire chief, a lot of mutual aide and good people doing their jobs, and I wanted to come check on it and support our first responders as they do what they’re trained to do.”
Starling said a serious concern was getting the fuel out of the river and also checking the bridge.
“NCDOT is checking the integrity of the bridge, but we’re worried about fuel going in the river,” the mayor stressed. “But also thankful for the professionalism and dedication of our law enforcement, fire and rescue that responded here tonight.”
The scene stayed busy into the night, as crews continued to work, eventually removing the wreckage.
According to a Highway Patrol report by Trooper by M.E. Millen, as of 5 a.m., the bridge was open to normal traffic.
The tractor-trailer involved in the accident was a third party contractor, SSA Transport Corp., out of Moreno Valley, Calif., hauling meats for Smithfield Foods.
First Sgt. Pearson said the driver of the truck, Shailendera Singh, gave law enforcement a Moreno Valley address, but had a New York Class A driver’s license.
“The cause of the accident is still under investigation,” said Pearson. “He was sent to Cape Fear Valley in Fayetteville for treatment. He was walking around the accident scene but then complained of pain. Charges are pending at this time.”
Pearson noted the reason the tractor-trailer caught on fire was due to a ruptured fuel tank.