FedEx truck explodes on I-270 in North St. Louis County

KMOX Radio | October 29, 2002

[Dave S]

Just heard on KMOX radio here in St. Louis that a Fed Ex truck exploded on interstate 270 here in North St. Louis County. Truck went airborne.

No further word on cause.

[MrB]

No way the driver survived if he was in the vehicle. Any explosion large enough to lift a FedEx truck would not be survivable.

As to whether it was a suicide bomber... a location was not given, nor was any list of damaged or injured people outside of the truck.

[sweetliberty]

OMG! This doesn't happen!

[rface]

waiting for updates....

Ashland, Missouri

[TrappedInLiberalHell]

Didn't John Muhammad hint to someone that he planned to blow up trucks by shooting at them? I think in that case it was fuel tankers, though. Could you cause a truck to explode by shooting its gas tank? I would suspect so, as the fuel burned and the tank could no longer contain the pressure.

But I'm getting WAY ahead of the known facts. Not that such a thing is unusual here at FR...

[Dan Cooper]

Footage on FOX news is showing the cab is relatively intact, there may be hope for the driver. The trailer is completely blown apart.

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Fox reporting it was an 18-wheeler, not a local delivery truck, and cab not badly damaged. So hopefully driver survived.

[Monty22]

Jeezus, the truck was shredded..

I hope they check for anthrax/smallpox/radiation!!!!

[TheLion]

Just saw this on Fox...really strange. Bet it was a package.

[3AngelaD]

The first pictures on Fox made it look as if the truck cab was intact, but the entire trailer section had disintegrated.

[Flyer]

You shipping on FedEx today? I saw pictures on Fox. Turned the trailer in to little bitty pieces.

[undergroundwarrior]

Fox just aired video of the truck. Ladder company extinguishing trailer portion of an 18 wheeler. Debris scattered for some distance.

[PhiKapMom]

Good thing it wasn't on I-44 that goes right through the heart of the city.

[Mrs. P]

My brother drives for Fed Ex......

[js1138]

Could you cause a truck to explode by shooting its gas tank?

Only in Hollywood or on NBC News. there's a great scene in "Last Action Hero" in which a movie villian becomes "real", enters the real world and discovers that cars don't explode when you shoot at them.

[RedWhiteBlue]

Fox just showed the truck. It looked as if the cab fared much better than the trailer. Judging by the looks, it is possible that the driver could be OK.

[undergroundwarrior]

Very strange. A double trailer set up. Had to be two devices???

[Recovering_Democrat]

I'm waiting for the announcement, "Truck was carrying marked absentee ballots from primarily poor, Democrat communities. The DNC has sent a phalanx of lawyers to the Show-Me state to ensure Jean Carnahan is spotted the likely 35,000 votes this truck was carrying."

<\sarcasm>

[MrB]

an 18-wheeler, not a local delivery truck

yep, I made an assumption, and was incorrect. Possible to survive if the explosion was near the rear of the trailer.

[Bikers4Bush]

Most tanker trucks have double walls, like a double hulled oil tanker.

In addition gas tankers usually have multiple tanks within so they can carry more than just one type of octane fuel.

If you could get one to go, you could get them all to go.

Not so sure how prone stainless would be to sparking when hit by a lead slug but if you got it to leak something would probably ignite it.

[TrappedInLiberalHell]

OK. Well, given the reports of the cab being relatively intact, my vote is on a bomb in the trailer.