Petrol tanker burns following N3 crash
"When the first fire engine arrived on scene, a petrol tanker loaded with 44 000 litres of jet fuel and petrol was on fire."
A truck assistant sustained critical injuries, a driver was hospitalised with minor injuries and two drivers escaped with no injuries after three trucks collided on the N3 northbound between Van Buuren on ramp and Gillooly`s Interchange in Bedfordview this afternoon.
City of Ekurhuleni`s Disaster and Emergency Management Services (DEMS) received the call at about 4.40pm and a rescue team responded.
Resources were also activated from Primrose, Edenvale and Boksburg. A fleet of five fire engines augmented by 21 firefighters were in attendance.
“When the first fire engine arrived on scene, a petrol tanker loaded with 44 000 litres of jet fuel and petrol was on fire. It seems the fire was a result of a crash. The second truck was transporting sand while the third one was empty,” said DEMS spokesperson William Ntladi.
“Firefighters temporarily closed all five lanes of the freeway while battling the blaze with a mixture of water and foam. The fire was extinguished and the scene was handed over to the metro police for investigation.”
