Fiery Tractor-Trailer Accident Closed 422 Wednesday
From The Post:
A tractor-trailer combination was involved in a fiery accident on U.S. Route 422 westbound, Montgomery County emergency dispatchers said, as it traveled Wednesday night (May 26, 2021) shortly before 8 p.m. near South Sanatoga Road. It was raining at the time, but it is unknown if the incident was weather-related.
At one point residents in the area of South Sanatoga Road claimed they heard what they described as “an explosion” and could later see smoke and flames.
The extent of injuries to those involved, if any, also is unknown. No official police report on the event was available as of Wednesday at 10:45 p.m. However, first responders at the time said the trailer had by then been successfully removed from the highway, and the truck hauling it was being readied for removal as well.
Units from the Sanatoga Fire Company were those first called to the scene at 7:55 p.m., dispatchers said. A post early Thursday (May 27) on the company’s Facebook page said its volunteer-members arrived to find the tractor of a food transport company already fully involved in flames. Accompanying photos showed the fire had begun spreading to the attached trailer. Firefighters scrambled to attack the flames with handheld lines.
Tanker-truck support from the Limerick Fire Department and Ringing Hill Fire Company also was called in to assist in supplying water at the scene, according to its post.
The four-lane, limited access highway was closed “for an extended period of time” in both directions between the Armand Hammer Boulevard and Sanatoga interchanges following the incident and during the response and clean-up, dispatchers reported.
Fire police from West End Stowe, Limerick, Sanatoga, and Ringing Hill funneled traffic off the highway at nearby exits. Other social media reports claimed local roads were congested as a result.
Accident photos supplied to The Post
Two additional photos are available at the Sanatoga Fire Company Facebook page, here.
Another photo taken by Jacob Curie is posted on the 422 Sucks Facebook page, here.