The tense moments after a tanker truck went up in flames along a South Jersey road.
That’s what dashcam video from a Delaware River Port Authority officer's cruiser shows of the crash along the Route 90 eastbound on-ramp to US Route 130 north in Pennsauken, just east of the Betsy Ross Bridge, on Feb. 23.
The TK Transport truck was carrying about 8,000 gallons of fuel when it ignited.
In the nearly hourlong dashcam video, responding officers talk to nearby residents as they worry that the driver could still be in the burning vehicle. The driver however made it out.
Pennsauken Police Capt. Michael Probasco told NBC10 the truck overturned around 11 a.m. while its driver, Brian Ervin, navigated the ramp. For some reason, the 43-year-old lost control sending the truck into a guardrail before landing on DRPA land. The impact ruptured the tractor-trailer's tank and the gasoline began to burn.
Ervin was treated for minor injuries. No one else was hurt.
Flaming fuel poured out of the truck, running across the graded ramp, down an embankment and perilously close to the backyards of homes. A second fire started in a small wooded area behind homes.
In the dashcam video, police can be heard telling drivers to avoid the scene as they discuss plans to evacuate residents from nearby homes.
Strong northwest winds kept the thick smoke from rising, forcing it to stay close to the street. Still, the plume could be seen from miles away in Cherry Hill and across the river in Center City Philadelphia.
"It’s just jet black smoke. I’ve never seen so much smoke," resident Florence Panto said, panting while describing the scene. The woman suffering from emphysema was concerned about being able to smell the acrid chemical through her closed doors and windows.
"It scratches your throat and like I said I’m about six houses down," she said. "So I mean I believe we’re in a good spot, but I’m sure the people right up the street, they have to be evacuated."
The ramp remained closed for several days after that crash.
No charges have been field and the exact cause of the crash remained under investigation.
