SALT LAKE COUNTY—
A Toyota Camry traveling the wrong direction westbound on I-215 collided head-on with a tanker truck triggering a massive fire Wednesday morning in Salt Lake County. The accident happened on I-215 westbound at 6200 South and 2300 East at around 10 a.m. Unified Fire Authority confirms the driver of the car was killed in the accident. The driver of the tractor trailer was taken to the Intermountain Medical Center in serious condition.Authorities say an elderly man got on the Union Park onramp heading westbound on I-215 and suddenly made a U-turn on the freeway heading into oncoming traffic before he collided with the semi.
Unified Fire Authority Capt. Clint Smith said the fuel tank of the truck ruptured and exploded, spilling fuel on the freeway.
"I saw him [Camry driver] slam into the semi and instantly both cars went up into flames, smoke everywhere," said Theodore Killinger, who stopped along the freeway to help. He says he first went to the semi driver to assist him and soon saw fuel ignited from the Camry coming towards him.
"The trail of gas from the car was on fire and was coming towards us, and everything we're on was covered in diesel, so we were like, we need to go now," said Killinger.
Killinger says the ignited fuel reached the semi and "the whole thing just went up in flames." He says he then reached the driver of the Camry to help and found the driver already dead.
"That driver was visibly deceased, he had severe head injuries...his car was on fire," says Killinger.
Smith also said the impact of the accident moved the Camry several yards away down the roadway. He said the driver of the car was an elderly man who entered the freeway on one of the on-ramps going the wrong direction. Witnesses of the accident say the man was looking confused.
I-215 was backed up for hours along both lanes of traffic near 6200 South. Crews took hours to clean up spilled fuel from the semi and to douse the fire that occured after the accident.
Is it not known at this time whether the tanker truck contains hazardous material. Officials on the scene report the truck does not have Hazmat placards on it.
The fire from the accident forced the evacuation of several nearby homes for short time.
The victim was said to be in his 70's but his identity has not been released until family is notified.
Stay with FOX 13 News and fox13now.com for more developments on this story.
