A truck carrying liquid nitrogen rolled over in Rockport on Wednesday morning, prompting a temporary road closure, as authorities provide scant details.
The Rockport Fire Department announced via Facebook on Wednesday morning that a portion of Route 17, between the intersections with Route 90 and Meadow Street, would be closed for “an extended period of time.”
The Fire Department included no additional details, and the Rockport Police Department did not issue its own statement on the closure.
According to the Pen Bay Pilot, the closure was prompted by an 18-wheeler single-vehicle rollover crash that took place around 6:30 a.m..
They reported that the driver was the vehicle’s sole occupant and was able to extricate himself from the crash.
Strangely, the outlet reported that the driver initially claimed to be uninjured and refused medical treatment; however, approximately 90 minutes later, he was transported to a hospital for treatment.
The extent of the driver’s injuries is not clear.
The Pen Bay Pilot reported that the truck was hauling a full tank of liquid nitrogen.
The fire department reportedly inspected the truck and found no leaks. Nevertheless, liquid nitrogen is considered hazardous material, and the road needed to be closed down until a representative of the Sanford-based company that sent the nitrogen could inspect the crash.
The truck was reportedly en route to Fisher Engineering in Rockland at the time of the crash.
Neither the Pen Bay Pilot article nor the fire department’s press release named the driver or indicated a cause of the crash.
The Maine Wire reached out to the Rockport Police Department and Fire Department, along with town officials, asking for more information, including the name of the driver and the cause of the crash, but they did not immediately respond.
