(Photo courtesy of Cherokee County Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security)
UPDATED
11:16pm – Article updated to add more pictures of the wrecker services up righting the 18 wheeler successfully.
3:54pm – A wrecker service out of Birmingham, AL has been dispatched to the scene to assist with up righting the truck, which is still full of anhydrous ammonia. They specialize in hazardous situations.
We now have an update on the road blockage affecting Alabama Highway 278 – along with County Roads 126 and 185. The Alabama Department of Transportation is now diverting traffic from County Road 45 over to County Road 8, eastbound into Georgia. Motorists should make plans to find alternate routes in the area for the remainder of the day, and everyone should avoid that area until further notice.
Traffic is being detoured from U.S. 278 onto Cherokee County 29 and U.S. 411. Troopers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Highway Patrol Division will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates accordingly.
An 18-wheeler overturned on Highway 278 near County Road 126 – just prior to 8:00 this (Friday) morning – resulting in the tanker springing what has been described as a “small leak”; the tanker was reportedly hauling somewhere in the neighborhood of 80,000 pounds of Anhydrous Ammonia.
Anhydrous ammonia – otherwise known as NH3 – is a widely used source of Nitrogen fertilizer. If not handled properly NH3 can be dangerous. Anhydrous means without water. Because NH3 contains little or no water it aggressively seeks out moisture, be it from soil, or your eyes, throat, lungs or skin. Any anhydrous ammonia contact with a person’s body could cause tissue dehydration, caustic burns as well as frostbite. When used as an agricultural fertilizer NH3 is compressed into a liquid; this requires a substantial amount of pressure and specially designed tanks and equipment. If not stored or transported properly serious injuries are possible. We understand that Marion Environmental, which is headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, is now on the scene (10:50am) to perform clean-up operations.
We’ve been informed, according to Piedmont EMS, that the driver of that rig has been air-lifted for treatment, following that mishap.
EMA Officials, Alabama state troopers, Piedmont EMS, Spring Garden firefighters and other emergency agencies are on the scene.
We’ll have additional information as it becomes available.
Additional Photos:
