At 11:36 p.m. on January 27th Okaloosa Dispatch received a 911 call for a tractor trailer on fire near mile marker 61 on Interstate 10 just outside of Crestview. The 911 caller reported that the fire had spread to the trailer of the rig, which was carrying 43,000 lbs. of motor oil.
The responding DVFD chief, immediately called for additional units including support from surrounding fire departments, Eglin AFB, and the Okaloosa County Special Operations Unit stationed at Ocean City-Wright Fire District.
Initial responding units reported that there were smoke and flames visible from 2 miles away. Upon arrival they found a fully involved tractor trailer with flames rolling approximately 100 feet in the air. Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Officers immediately closed all west bound lanes of Interstate 10 as the fire began spreading into the woods.
Firefighters had to setup a safety perimeter approximately 300 yards back as flaming oil drums exploded and fired into the air.
Ocean City-Wright Hazardous Materials Technicians on the Special Operations Unit, accompanied by Battalion Chief One and additional support techs from FWBFD Engine 7 responded to this incident.
In addition to the Special Ops Haz Mat Team, the Florida State Warning Point in Tallahassee was notified, as well as the Department of Environmental Protection, Okaloosa County Emergency Management, and the Florida Highway Patrol.
Several Dump truck loads of dirt were requested to the scene to contain the burning oil runoff. Fire crews from multiple agencies were able to confine the fire, but could not effectively extinguish blaze until runoff protection could be constructed. Direct firefighting efforts would have caused the burning oil to become a flowing fire spreading down the interstate, culvert, and possibly into waterways.
Once the truckloads of dirt arrived, accompanied by bulldozers from the Division of Forestry make shift dams were constructed to contain the product. Once this was completed, and the no more explosions occurred, it was safe for Eglin Fire and North Okaloosa Crash Rescue Trucks to apply specialized firefighting foam to extinguish the fire.
Ocean City-Wright and FWBFD Special Operations Haz Mat Members remained on scene throughout the fire to monitor Haz Mat release and assist with decon efforts for firefighting operations. The team remained on scene until the fire was extinguished and the product contained.
At around 04:30 one lane of westbound traffic was re-opened. By 5:00 a.m. firefighters were able to clear the scene and turn the site over to FHP and DEP for investigation and clean-up.
Fortunately no one was injured in this event. However, the fire burned for nearly 4 hours and the tractor trailer was completely destroyed. One lane of I-10 is likely to remain closed for several more hours as clean-up efforts proceed.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. The total costs and damages are not yet available.
