Posted 11:55 pm Friday, November 30, 2012
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I-20 traffic stalled for hours after 18-wheeler catches fire
An 18-wheeler fire Wednesday evening on Interstate 20 ruined a truckload of flat- screen TVs and stalled eastbound traffic for hours.
Van Zandt County Fire Marshal Chuck Allen said the incident occurred just before 8 p.m. at the 515 mile marker, west of Farm-to-Market Road 47 near Wills Point.
Allen said the Balkan Trucking Co. Trailer was on its way from Fort Worth to a Walmart in Florida with a cargo of about 240 60-inch flat screen TVs.
He said some sort of mechanical failure with the front passenger tire caused a fire that traveled up into the cargo area.
“The fire was at the front of the trailer, and (we) couldn't get to the seat of the fire because of the shrink-wrapped TVs that were in there that were soaking wet,” Allen said. “We ended up having to hand off loads of TVs to get to the fire.”
Allen said no one was injured, but all the televisions were ruined by fire, smoke or water.
Van Zandt County Fire Marshal Chuck Allen said the incident occurred just before 8 p.m. at the 515 mile marker, west of Farm-to-Market Road 47 near Wills Point.
Allen said the Balkan Trucking Co. Trailer was on its way from Fort Worth to a Walmart in Florida with a cargo of about 240 60-inch flat screen TVs.
He said some sort of mechanical failure with the front passenger tire caused a fire that traveled up into the cargo area.
“The fire was at the front of the trailer, and (we) couldn't get to the seat of the fire because of the shrink-wrapped TVs that were in there that were soaking wet,” Allen said. “We ended up having to hand off loads of TVs to get to the fire.”
Allen said no one was injured, but all the televisions were ruined by fire, smoke or water.
“It just killed me to stand there and watch them unload them knowing they were all destroyed,” Allen said.
The interstate re-opened around 2 a.m. Thursday.
The Texas Department of Public Safety, Van Zandt County Fire Marshal's office, Wills Point, College Mound Volunteer and Elmo volunteer fire departments responded to the scene.
The interstate re-opened around 2 a.m. Thursday.
The Texas Department of Public Safety, Van Zandt County Fire Marshal's office, Wills Point, College Mound Volunteer and Elmo volunteer fire departments responded to the scene.
