Tanker Truck Explosion/Accident I-95 South of Baltimore

WJZ Channel 13, Baltimmore | 01/13/2004 | Orbiting_Rosie's_Head

[Orbiting_Rosie's_Head]

Large tanker truck accident and fire on I-95 at the intersection of I-195 near BWI airport. Highway is on fire, lots of wreckage from other trucks and cars.

[mr.sarcastic]

I work near 95 in Beltsville, practically 20 miles away, and from my 15th floor office window I could see the huge cloud of smoke. For a couple minutes I was convinced a plane had crashed en route to BWI.

[cspackler]

Do they still think it's funny? (Or is it a matter they really do not have anything to say....)

My thoughts exactly...

"I have nothing to add to the discussion, but I must post SOMETHING!!!!!!"

[TBall]

Any bets on when the lanes will be back open?

[DCPatriot]

Why is that?

The stretch where the accident happened is a terrific ride. Average speed 70-75mph. 4 lanes. What the heck is wrong with that?

[GOPJ]

The place feels safer with you here, Sarge. Thanks.

[BykrBayb]

Living in D.C. suburbs, having to commute through traffic Hell every day, I have to ask: Where is the news here? This is a regular, pretty much daily, occurrence, in the D.C/Baltimore area's gridlocked road system.

The news is not in how inconvenient this is for commuters. I live in the Philadelphia area, and I can't stand to watch the traffic report. There's a fiery traffic accident, and the tone of the report is "Gee, this is bad. Traffic is backed up for 3 miles on the Schuykill Expressway. Commuters should plan an alternate route." No mention of the people involved. Did they live? Did they die? It doesn't matter. The big story is, will I have time to stop for a cup of coffee on my way to work, or will I be tied up in traffic? Is there an alternate route that's still flowing along at 90 mph? And the people that are caught in that traffic jam - how many of them are praying for the people involved in the accident? Probably not many. Most of them are just pi$$ed off because they've been delayed.

‹insert Forrest Gump voice› A flaming tractor and trailer is blocking the road, again.

[BykrBayb]

I know. Leave it to me to pick the no-humor thread to try and be funny on. Oh well, I did get an award for my trouble making. :)

And I do pray and hope for the best for everyone involved in this horrible accident.

Wow! You may have gotten your skates tangled starting into that jump, but oh boy, what a nice solid landing. I'm impressed.

[pt17]

Excuse me .. I don't believe anyone put you in charge of what can or cannot be put on this thread

Like you, I am free to express my opinions here and, by the way, you're excused.

[leadpenny]

News Conference being shown on CNN and local TV. Cause still unknown. Five fatalities. Still preliminary.

[leadpenny]

Still unknown what the tanker was hauling, what company, where he was from and where he was going.

[leadpenny]

There is a new curving Flyover at the Springfield interchange on the Beltway SW of DC. It will carry traffic from the inner loop to southbound I-95. It is not open yet but I go under it on my way to work and it looks like drivers will need a pilot's license to get on it. This accident will no doubt bring attention to the Springfield interchange when it comes to tanker trucks.

[oceanperch]

i wondered who was atthe wheel 2

[foreverfree]

You must mean Ft. Meade (for George Gordon Meade).

My stepdad underwent basic at Meade.

Back to the topic...my prayers go out for the souls of the deceased in this accident and their families.

foreverfree

[CurlyBill]

Yeah, that's what we thought initially, especially since the explosion was heard by those outside. It was about 4 miles away from us, but it looked more like 2 miles from the smoke.

[oceanperch]

road closed 12hrs

[bvw]

Four deaths are a sad thing, but it could have easily been much worse. That is a amazingly small number considering the circumstances.

[tracer]

Thanks be to God that this did not happen in the Harbor Tunnel, which seems to be "protected" only by a sign warning that the transit of vehicles carrying flammable material or explosives is "prohibited."

The Maryland State Police, Baltimore City and County PDs, and the Baltimore Harbor Authority should be doing more than posting signs in these perilous times, but I'm not willing to wager that they will until it's too late.

Actually, given the fact that the Islamofascists no doubt already saw the yesterday's conflagration on Baltimore area and national TV, it's already "too late."

Despite the traffic mess that would cause, all trucks of all sizes should be banned from the tunnel forthwith. In addition, smaller vehicles should be "sniffed" by K-9s and chemical sensors -- and not searched, with the Constitution rightfully in mind -- as they pass through toll booths for explosives, flammable materials, and drugs (the tunnel is on the I-95 "drug superhighway," after all.

I live in this metro area and know that there are plenty of other less-dangerous ways to provide access to Baltimore -- and other locales accessible by traffic tunnel (e.g. Boston, NYC) for that matter.

And squeamishness about "ethnic profiling" be damned..... .........

[Hatteras]

"...the Harbor Tunnel"

You mean "the tubes"? I lived in the area for awhile and I always heard the girl on the traffic reports on a local radio station refer to the Harbor Tunnel as "the tubes".

Okay, well, I thought it was cute...

[John Robinson]

No, and it's not likely the limit will ever be raised. Most threads don't have that much traffic.

[CurlyBill]

Yeah, they actually had to patch the roadway a bit. I haven't driven by there yet, but I will probably have to within the next day or two. No identities on the victims yet. I'm just hoping that it's nobody I know.