Tractor Trailer Rollover on I-84 with Haz-Mat

February 11, 2008

Captain Tony Bruno, Captain James Redway, Firefighters, Mike Dayton, and Ed Cavallaro pose by Trooper 1 after it landed on the highway.

A Long, Cold, Tiring Day For Middlebury.

 

About the Incident

At approximately 5:20am the members of the Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department were awakened by their fire pagers sending out a dispatch for a Tractor Trailer Rollover on I-84. The first tone stated there was a strong smell of propane in the area. The Connecticut State Police arrived on scene and reported a compressed gas leaking from the trailer. This information was relayed in the second dispatch tone. Sgt. Rob Desmarais (Son of Selectman Bob Desmarais) was enroute to work at Troop G and was the first trooper on scene and immediately began to survey the scene and made a heroic save. He pulled the driver to safety, who was transported via Campion Ambulance to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Just as this was occurring Chief Perrotti arrived on scene.


Captain Tony Bruno early in the morning thinking about the elements of the call.

Chief Paul Perrotti was the first fire officer on scene and immediately began to make decisions in terms of what had to be done. The CSP had already shut down the highway in both directions, while Engine 1 was arriving on scene. There was a slight delay in contacting the company due to difficulty finding the paperwork. The company, Linde Gas was contacted and began to mobilize their personnel from Massachusetts and New Jersey. During this process. It was quickly determined that the trailer contained compressed Hydrogen, a very flammable gas.

As soon as it was determined that the tanker was carrying hydrogen gas, it was determined the Fire Department would have to immediately evacuate all residents within a 1/2 mile radius of the incident.. Engine 3 and Engine 6 were immediately dispatched to start warning residents of the accident and their need to evacuate immediately. They were instructed to go to Fire Headquarters for shelter. Once all assembled at Fire HQ, the MVFD apologized for the rude awakening they had given the residents, and served up a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs, toast, milk, oj and coffee.

Family Makes The Best Of It At Fire HQ

 

Efforts were made to make them as comfortable as possible during the inconvenience. First Selectman and Veteran Firefighter Thomas Gormley stayed at the firehouse and talked to residents and firefighters about the situation. He requested, and was transported in his fire gear to the highway to survey the scene and talk to the chief. Selectman and Former Deputy Chief Robert Desmarais was also at the firehouse to assist with the displaced citizens and evacuations.

Tom Gormley Addresses The Press.

 


Chief Perrotti and Tony Bruno look at the trailer to determine what the best course of action might be.

Chief Perrotti along with Captains Tony Bruno and James Redway Approach Tanker Truck With Linde Rep

Firefighters Stage Engine Well Away From The Hot Zone

 

Chief Perrotti Briefs The Press

 

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection was also requested and dispatched to the scene. They evaluated the situation and they concurred with Chief Perrotti that the best course of action was to wait until company representatives could arrive to deal with the product. It is always best to have the people who are specially trained in the product and the equipment used to transport the product decide on how to remove the hazardous situation. The reps were given police escorts and experts received a ride in on Trooper 1 to the scene to expedite the process. The MVFD set up a landing zone on the highway for Trooper 1.


Trooper 1 getting ready to land on the East bound side of I-84 in a landing zone setup and protected by the members of the MVFD

Dealing with the Hydrogen

It was decided the best way of making the scene safe was to bleed the gas off into the atmosphere. Hydrogen is much lighter than air and given the weather conditions posed an insignificant risk of staying on the ground. Prior to releasing the product, a stack was setup that was custom built for this specific accident by the company. Crews were briefed on the process and what to expect. To ensure that no hazardous situations would be created, 3 metering locations were maintained. One on 84 near the site, and 2 on Shadduck Rd. on opposite sides of 84. If any of these three meters began to detect any level of the Lower Explosive Limit, the process would be stopped. Early in the process one meter sounded, and the bleed rate was reduced. Following this the meters remained quiet for the rest of the operation. Following this process Helium was pumped into the tanks to bind with any remaining Hydrogen and remove it from the tanks completely. This would ensure that no or very little Hydrogen would be left behind.


Technicians from Linde gas work on bleeding the remaining gas from the truck.

Removing the Truck

The plan to remove the tractor trailer was to have Industrial Riggers Inc of Waterbury and Karas Towing roll the truck back over onto it's wheels and bring it down the embankment onto Shadduck Road. Prior to this being done several trees had to be cut down to make a path for the truck, this was done with the help of the Connecticut DOT. Firefighters, and DOT workers cut down trees and fed them into a wood chipper to keep the road clear. During this time, the weather began to turn bad, as snow began to fall to complicate matters.


DOT workers and Firefighters work on clearing the trees and some debris from the intended path of the truck.

The trailer was secured to the crane and was rolled over and readied to be brought down the embankment. It was determined that at this point, due to the weather concerns and the length of time the road had been closed that it would be in the best interest to secure the truck and remove it the following morning with a loader from the town. The highway was cleared and reopened approximately 14 hours following the initial call.


Firefighters Ed Cavallaro and Dennis Neal watch as Industrial Riggers slowly begins to raise the truck to get supports
around the tubes to keep them from falling apart.

Issues Resulting from the Accident

The first and loudest criticism of the incident revolves around the traffic problems that plagued the area. Some people were concerned that the road was closed down too long. This is false, the roadway had to be closed initially due to the leaking Hydrogen. This is the same reason that nearly 40 homes in the area were evacuated within minutes of the initial call. Secondly, once the hydrogen was safely removed from the container it was still necessary to keep the highway closed to allow everyone to do their jobs. Industrial Riggers and Karas needed room to operate safely, and therefore the road had to remain closed.


Middlebury Police Sgt. Wildman talks on the radio in the middle of the shut down I-84.

 

Middlebury Traffic Caused By Highway Closing

 

Officer Todd Adams Assists Motorists At I-84 Ramp

 

Also, in regards to the traffic problems, some criticism fell on the Town of Middlebury's Emergency Operations plan for not being able to deal with the heavy increase in traffic. There was nothing that could have been done to alleviate this issue. The CSP and CT DOT determined where the highway should be closed to disperse as much of the traffic onto other roads as possible. There was no way to avoid the traffic problems in town, approximately 70,000-80,000 cars travel on that stretch of 84 in an average day, and they were all forced onto side roads. Detour routes were established and during the snow maintained frequently by the DOT.


Firefighter Dan Santiago drinks some water after a long day of hard work for the MVFD.

Many people were temporarily displaced from their homes for several hours. This was also necessary, due to the hazardous condition. Families were brought to the firehouse where they were fed breakfast and lunch, and able to watch television in order to keep up to date on the situation. The Fire House served as an Emergency Shelter for the town.

The Debriefing

Following any major incident it is common for departments to get together with all those involved and discuss the call, and analyze the operations. This was done on Thursday, February 28, 2008 at Fire Headquarters. All agencies involved were invited down to the firehouse for dinner, a presentation and open discussion on the call. Those present were:

All of the above were the major agencies involved, each played a major role in getting the incident resolved, and operations back to normal, and we are very thankful to them.

During the debriefing, agencies were asked of their opinions as to how the call went, and any improvements that could have been made in the future. A few minor issues were mentioned, which will be resolved, but ultimately every representative present stated that The MVFD did a great job at running the call, and we made the process much easier for all those involved. All agencies worked very well together and "checked their egos at the door" when they were dispatched for the call. Every department, and person worked well with each other and within minutes phone numbers were exchanged for operational purposes and introductions were made. Linde Gas representatives in a public town meeting stated that the Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department had done everything absolutely right.

The Conclusion

In the end, this was a very long call for all personnel involved. The crews were on I-84 for approximately 14 hours. In addition to this equipment had to be cleaned, airpacks had to be refilled, and everything had to put back into service. The last firefighters left Fire Headquarters at approximately 11:30pm that night, equaling approximately 18 hours. Many of the firefighters that responded did so knowing that they would miss a day's wage, and responded anyway. Over the course of the day 42 firefighters had responded to either the initial call or to the fire house to help with the displaced families. Two ambulance calls were dispatched and FD-11 and FD-12 were able to respond to both of them. Hats off to all members that helped, it was a tough job well done!

Other Pictures from the Day

A view of Engine 1 from the font of the truck back on the highway early in the call. It was still dark when firefighters were called in from their beds at home to respond to this call.
The tanker on it's side over the embankment with DEP and Linde gas working to secure the scene.
The cover for the manifold was ripped off and found lying on the ground behind the truck. The placard was still intact so firefighters were able to quickly determine the initial steps necessary to keep themselves and the citizens of Middlebury safe.
Through Chief Guisti, the Waterbury Police Department loaned out their Mobile Precinct for use over the course of the day. This allowed firefighters, state troopers, DEP and DOT workers to get in from the weather. It also allowed Chief Perrotti and police officials to view the news to ensure proper information regarding traffic patterns were being relayed to the public.
Trooper 1 landed on I-84 to deliver Linde gas officials, appropriately in the "Emergency Stopping Only" area.
Trooper 1 having landed.
Trooper 1 surveying the scene from above.
Working to offload the Hydrogen off into the atmosphere.
The truck lying on its side near some trees, a view from the Shadduck Road overpass.
A shot of the bottom of the trailer with the braces which had been broken dangling.
The front of the truck, which had sustained heavy damage from the impact, with debris lying on the ground.
A State DOT worker cuts a tree near the front of the truck to facilitate flipping the truck back over.
Middlebury Firefighters assist in tree removal.
A view of the tanks from the side while Industrial Riggers prepares for the removal operation.
After being rolled back over the heavy damage to the cab can really be seen, and it is hard to believe that the driver survived.

Photos by Firefighters Jon Vaughan, and Dan Santiago, Story by Firefighter Jon Vaughan
Special thanks to Apprentice Firefighter Rob Walsh for use of his camera.

A Few Things Added By Jim Redway
Copyright Middlebury Volunteer Fire Department - All Rights Reserved.