KNOXVILLE, TN – Tennessee Highway Patrol has officially confirmed the reason behind why Tuesday’s fiery propane truck rollover crash happened.
Troopers told WBIR that the driver traveling west on East Emory Road had gone over the edge of the road, prompting the motorist to overcorrect and drift across the road before crashing and overturning. As a result, the truck’s valve got damaged, which caused the truck to catch on fire and gas to leak from the truck.
Knox County Rural Metro Fire Department and law enforcement arrived at the scene around 9:30 a.m. and closed the road. Firefighters confirmed the driver was able to safely evacuate the burning truck and was spared from injuries. Fire crews shut off the valve that was leaking gas and had to issue temporary evacuation orders for local residents, including Corryton Elementary School students and staff.
All evacuated individuals were placed in temporary shelters as crews worked to safely transfer the gas from the overturned truck to another commercial vehicle.
The Knoxville Utilities Board was requested to also shut down power during the clean-up and transfer of gas.
Before officially reopening the area before 6 p.m., troopers conducted a hazmat safety inspection of the truck.
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