Truck rolled over after getting into accident with another vehicle
LEE TOWNSHIP -- "The driver we got is well trained like I said and if he didn't act she would have been dead and the kids would have been dead too,” said Kimmel Propane owner Scott Kimmel.
A near head-on collision left a propane truck this size overturned into a ditch leaking propane.
“The safest thing to do is evacuate the immediate area on an incident like this with a propane tank involved at least a half mile in all directions,” said Lee Township Fire Chief Daryl Amrozowicz.
The propane company says less than a half gallon of product leaked out. When hitting the air the compressed gas grows exponentially, giving cause for evacuations.
“My wifre had called and said volunteer firemen had shown up to house saying we would have to evacuate the house because of a propane leak,” said homeowner Chad Martin.
Firefighter say foggy conditions, high humidity and relatively low winds kept the propane from leaving the area.
“Propane is flammable it will travel distances if it finds a source of ignition with the proper air fuel mixture it will ignite,” said Amrozowicz.
Hours after the accident Chad martin was still trying to get home just a block from the spill.
“I called 911 to get a heads up on it and they told me it was going to be a while,” said Martin.
The propane truck was towed away around 3 PM and the area is safe. Now the owner of the propane company, Scott Kimmel is shifting his focus to the health of his driver who he says avoided a worse collision.
“His leg is badly injured they are working on it right now. But his first words were, is she alright?”
