A 13 mile portion of Highway 12 in Knox County, Nebraska remains closed this morning, following a Wednesday, March 4, 2009, crash involving a tanker truck and a pickup. Both east and west bound lanes of Highway 12 are closed from the Santee Junction to just past the Lindy Junction.
“It is a waiting game at this point,” said Bloomfield Fire Chief Steve True. “Safety is our main priority. We have Hazardous Materials (Haz Mat) officials on the scene, once they determine the area is no longer dangerous we will get things moving again.”
It is anticipated residents of Lindy evacuated during the incident, will be allowed to return to their homes shortly.
The section of highway was closed after the 10:15 a.m. crash yesterday, which claimed the life of 39-year-old Chad Leboldus, of Niobrara, Nebraska. Troopers investigating the scene believe Leboldus was driving eastbound on Highway 12, when his pickup crossed the center line and collided with a westbound tanker truck. A small piggy back tank on the tanker truck exploded on impact, causing the tanker truck to catch fire. The driver of the tanker truck, 52-year-old Frederick Steffen of Crofton, Nebraska was taken to Mercy Medical Center in Sioux City, Iowa, where he is being treated for non-life threatening injuries.
The Nebraska State Patrol is working in conjunction with the State Fire Marshal, Nebraska Department of Roads, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Knox County Emergency Management, as well as numerous fire and rescue personnel from surrounding communities in northeast Nebraska.
The final portion of Highway 12 near the Lindy spur in Knox County that was closed following a fatal crashing involving a tanker truck and a pickup has reopened.
A four mile portion of Highway 12 east of the Lindy Spur was reopened at 3:20 p.m., Thursday, March 05, 2009.
New Picture added….
What is it about smaller vehicles trying to tangle with the big-boys on the highway? Very sad, but this happens way too often and the results are equally dispensed. It remains unwise to display your poorer driving skills around these ‘monsters’ on the highway at a time when you should be on your ‘highest alert’. This is not to say the truckers are above being human either, and they, like you, have faults. (You just don’t want to be too close when that happens either.) So, in any case, stay away from them and give them space whether they or you, need it or not!