A gas tanker truck with 9,200 gallons crashed, burst into flames in Rockville Center, Long Island
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A tanker truck holding 9,200 gallons of gasoline crashed into a vacant building, flipped and burst into raging flames on Long Island early Wednesday, according to officials.
The tanker crashed into a vacant La-Z-Boy furniture store at North Centre Avenue and Sunrise Highway in Rockville Centre around 1:15 a.m., authorities said. It also veered into a liquor store, according to reports.
“When I came here, there was fire everywhere, the streets, the tanker, the two buildings, and when I looked down Sunrise Highway, there was fire coming out of seven or eight manhole covers,” Rockville Centre Fire Department Chief James Avondet told reporters on scene. “It’s one of the worst things I’ve seen in my 47-year career.”
Another video, obtained by NBC 4, shows the moment the truck burst into flames after it toppled over.
The La-Z-Boy building was decimated in the crash, officials said.
The truck driver was hurt, as were three of the 150 firefighters who responded, officials said.
But firefighters were luckily able to get the blaze under control “in a relatively short time with very few injuries.”
“We’re very glad [that] if it was going to happen, it happened at one o’clock in the morning with nobody else around,” he added.
Nassau County Chief Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro said the truck driver was “able to self-extricate and he was transported to a local hospital.”
Fuel drained into the sewer system and local creeks, where it was being contained with booms, according to Uttaro.
“So there’s no threat to the environment at the moment,” the chief said. “There’s no threat to any of the citizens or any homes.”
The Coast Guard was helping to map the spill, according to Uttaro.
Multiple state agencies, including the Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Transportation, Division of Homeland Security & Emergency Services and New York State Police responded to the scene, Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.
“The crash resulted in a fire and an estimated 9,000 gallons of fuel spilled,” Hochul said. “The scene remains active with Route 27 and its surrounding roadways closed. Motorists and pedestrians should avoid the area. At this time, State agency personnel continue to support Nassau County’s response to the incident.”
The DEC was using a drone pilot to “assess potential environmental impacts to the Mill River and surrounding area,” the governor said.
The cause of the crash remained under investigation later Wednesday.
Earlier reports initially estimated the tanker was holding 13,000 gallons of fuel. Read more from NYP
