About 11:08 a.m., on May 11, 1976, a Transport Company of Texas tractor-semitrailer (tank) transporting 7,509 gallons of anhydrous ammonia struck and then penetrated a bridge rail on a ramp connecting I-610 with the Southwest Freeway (U.S. 59) in Houston, Texas. The tractor and trailer left the ramp, struck a support column of an adjacent overpass, and fell onto the Southwest Freeway, approximately 15 feet below. The anhydrous ammonia was released from the damaged tank semitrailer. Six persons died as a result of the accident, 78 persons were hospitalized, and approximately 100 other persons were treated for injuries. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the excessive speed of the vehicle combined with the lateral surge of liquid in the partially loaded tank truck, which caused it to overturn. The cause of 5 of the 6 fatalities and all of the 178 injuries was the inhalation of anhydrous ammonia.


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    Title :

    Highway Accident Report: Transport Company of Texas, Tractor-Semitrailer (Tank) Collision with Bridge Column and Sudden Dispersal of Anhydrous Ammonia Cargo, I-610 at Southwest Freeway, Houston, Texas, May 11, 1976


    Publication date :

    1977


    Size :

    24 pages


    Type of media :

    Report


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English