HAZMAT crews evaluating scene after tanker crash on Rt. 220

(WHSV)
Published: Feb. 20, 2019 at 11:49 AM EST
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Officials with Botetourt County are warning anyone who lives near or has livestock near Catawba Creek not to drink from the waterway until HAZMAT teams can clear the scene after a tanker truck fire Wednesday morning.

As snow and sleet led to hazardous road conditions in the morning, a gas tanker caught fire along US-220 near Fincastle.

According to WDBJ, Botetour County fire crews responded around 6:25 a.m.

All lanes of Rt. 220 were shut down for hours.

The tanker, carrying an estimated 8000 gallons of fuel, ruptured, threatening structures in the area and damaging an underlying culvert pipe.

Crews determined the culvert pipe underneath the roadway collapsed, which has closed the roadway for even longer.

The truck driver, identified as James Willard Yarbrough, Jr., of Stuart, was charged with reckless driving.

Fuel leaked from the tanker in the crash and spilled into the culvert, prompting the arrival of HAZMAT crews.

Units from Botetourt County Fire & EMS, Fincastle, Eagle Rock, and Troutville Fire Departments, Emergency Management and Hazardous Materials from the state Department of Emergency Management, and VDOT have all been on the scene.

VDOT officials are on site to evaluate the roadway, according to police. Currently, detours are in place and US 220 will remain closed for most of the morning.