A federal report into a tanker truck crash in central Illinois a year ago that spilled toxic chemicals and killed five people includes 17 Ohioans who admitted they were forced off the road as the truck passed them. Contains an interview with a young girl. along with the minivan she was driving.
On September 29, 2023, on the two-lane Route 40 in Teutopolis, the minivan moved back to the right lane, causing the tanker to slow down and veer to the right to avoid a head-on collision with an oncoming vehicle, according to Dash news agency. That's what it means. Cam video from the truck was also released late Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board.
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“Oh, (expletive). That's right. Oh my god. Yeah, that was really bad. Wow. Oh my god (expletive),” the girl said on Oct. 4, 2023, in Illinois. he said while watching the video from his ill-fated truck. State Police Interview.
The tanker truck was carrying corrosive anhydrous ammonia when it jackknifed into a utility trailer parked just off the highway. A trailer hitch punctured the tank, spilling about half of the 7,500-gallon (28,390-litre) cargo on the west side of Teutopolis, a community about 110 miles (177 kilometers) northeast of St. Louis, around 8:40 p.m. .
A federal report into a tanker truck crash in central Illinois a year ago that spilled toxic chemicals and killed five people includes 17 Ohioans who admitted they were forced off the road as the truck passed them. Contains an interview with a young girl. along with the minivan she was driving. (Fox News)
As a result, five people died, including three family members who were near the road when the incident occurred. About 500 people were evacuated in the hours following the accident to avoid exposure to dangerous plumes from chemicals that farmers used to add nitrogen fertilizer to soil and large buildings as a refrigerant.
The Transportation Commission said the latest findings are merely a statement of the facts and do not include any later anticipated analysis or conclusions.
Illinois State Police conducted its own investigation, and spokeswoman Melanie Arnold said the department turned over its findings to Effingham County State's Attorney Aaron Jones last month. A message seeking comment was left with Jones at his office Thursday.
The girl, whose name is redacted in state police records because she was a minor at the time, was traveling with her mother and older brother to visit her mother's boyfriend in a suburb of St. Louis, Illinois, authorities said. She said an accident occurred on Interstate 70 earlier that night, causing a large amount of traffic to be detoured onto Route 40 and passing three trucks on the road heading west toward Teutopolis.
The girl said the overtaking of the tanker started in the overtaking zone, but the video showed a sign prohibiting overtaking. She said she estimated that after she started passing, she realized she needed to accelerate to clear the oncoming car, so she turned right at 90 mph, intending to narrowly miss the oncoming car. She told investigators that her mother was upset about the close call, but thought she had sufficient permission.
However, she refused the police investigator's request to show her the dashcam footage again.
“No, you don't have to. It was completely my fault,” the girl said. “To be honest, I've had times in the past where I've had trouble making good decisions about things like distance and whether I have enough time to do something.”
The surviving truck driver said the truck ran onto the shoulder of the road in an attempt to give the minivan room to get over, lost traction on gravel and crashed into a drainage ditch. The girl, who continued westbound, said she soon saw an emergency vehicle coming eastbound, but was unable to connect it to passing the truck.
Before the family returned to Ohio, she said she had no idea the crash had occurred as her mother read the news about the crash.
“Of course not,” she told investigators. “I said it about three times.”
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She ducked when one of the investigators expressed disbelief that no one in the car noticed the truck overturning behind them.
“Nobody said, 'Oh, the guy behind you ran off the road,'” the girl said. “That would have been a big deal for everyone. We would have thought, 'Oh, (expletive), I just caused something really bad.' We would have thought about it all night after that.” to do.
