Tanker Accident Forces Evacuation

Workers were evacuated Monday from businesses within a half mile of a tanker truck carrying liquid oxygen that overturned on Interstate 5.

A section of the freeway was closed and north- and south-bound traffic was being rerouted onto city streets, causing a major traffic jam.

At least seven people were injured when the truck and several vehicles were involved in an accident late Monday morning. A 52-year-old man was admitted to St. Joseph Hospital with broken ribs. Three people were treated and released and injuries to three others were being assessed.

Some highly flammable liquid oxygen escaped through a pressure relief valve on the tanker, police Capt. Randy Carroll said. The tanker itself was not damaged, he said.

A 400-foot “red zone” was set up around the wreckage and only firefighters in safety gear were allowed inside the area.

State Transportation Department spokesman Stan Bigler said fire crews hosed down the wreck to prevent a spark.

Emptying the damaged tanker’s contents into another truck was expected to take hours, Carroll said.