Truck filled with explosives catches on fire

[Bastastic]

This is the only link I could find about this story. At the time it caused some concern, but now it seems as if it never happend. There are no news articles saying anything more. Any ideas?

http://www.620ktar.com/index.php?sid=189194&nid=6

Fire Involving Truck Hauling Explosives Shuts 202 in Mesa
June 15th, 2006 @ 12:10pm

by Bob McClay/KTAR and Wire Reports




A short in the lighting system caused a fire on a truck on the Loop 202 near Alma School Road at around 4:30 a.m. Thursday. The incident nearly resulted in a major catastrophe.

The freeway was closed when officers learned the truck was filled with dynamite, blasting caps and 11 tons of ammonium nitrate, four times the amount used in the Oklahoma City bombing.

"Go back to Oklahoma City and you realize the devastation within the building that occurred over there, and this was four-times the material," said DPS Officer Tim Mason. "We would've had a lot of people lose their lives today and it would've been a lot of property loss."

The Department of Public Safety said fortunately the trucking company had another employee following behind the 18-wheeler, and it was that person who noticed the fire and alerted the driver and emergency personnel. The fire was quickly doused.

A section of Loop 202 was closed for a short time and an order was initially put out to evacuate the rural area within a mile radius. However, that evacuation order was lifted after the fire was put out and the truck driven off the freeway.
No one was injured and no citations were issued. The truck has been moved to a remote area and the investigation continues.

[Aplomb]

Thanks for posting this Bastastic. There's more info here about that, including details that were not included and most concerning in that first report. However, I don't know what to believe any more. I mean, they do hire contractors. http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=67861 Mesa News

Employee’s quick reaction in Loop 202 truck fire prevents blast

By Gary Grado and Nicole Birk Tribune

June 16, 2006

A fast-acting employee, state troopers and firefighters prevented a catastrophe early Thursday when an excavation truck hauling thousands of pounds of explosives and chemicals caught fire at Loop 202 and Alma School Road in Mesa.

Related Links Mesa The truck, on its way to a West Valley job site, was carrying 22,050 pounds of ammonium nitrate — four times the amount used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. But that wasn’t all. It also had eight cases of dynamite, five cases of electrical blasting caps and 1,400 nonelectrical blasting caps — a dangerous combination. “We would have had a lot of people lose their lives and the property damage would have been catastrophic,” said detective Tim Mason, Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman. AJ Andresen of J & D Excavators, a Mesa company, was following the company’s truck as it made its way along the freeway toward a work site at Interstate 17 and Happy Valley Road. “All of sudden I saw flames coming off the top right of the truck,” Andresen said. Andresen grabbed a fire extinguisher from the truck and with the help of the truck’s passenger and driver climbed on top of the tarpcovered load and sprayed downward. He said it never really crossed his mind that he was averting a catastrophe. “There was no huge flames, there was just small flames,” Andresen said. Mason said 911 operators started getting calls about 4:30 a.m. about a truck on fire. The flames were out by the time Mesa firefighters arrived, Andresen said. The danger wasn’t over. Mason said a DPS hazardous materials expert happened to be nearby, and he immediately determined a one-mile perimeter was necessary. Loop 202 was shut down for two hours from Country Club Drive to Dobson Road, Mason said. In that time, officers and firefighters risked their lives as they removed the blasting caps from the truck. DPS commercial vehicle inspectors determined the truck was in complete compliance with all federal regulations for transporting explosives. “This is a prime example of why these precautions are taken,” Mason said. Jack Dekker, J & D’s director of operations, said the fire was sparked by an interior light missing its safety cover. Dekker said the problem wasn’t caught during a morning safety inspection, but it might have popped off during the drive. “Everything happened for a reason and it wasn’t our time to go,” Dekker said.