Golden – A flatbed truck driver was killed when his rig crashed and exploded Wednesday evening, shutting down both directions of Interstate 70.
The driver and the company he was hauling for had not been identified by late Wednesday.
The driver did not make it out of the rig before the explosion, and investigators were trying to determine whether anyone else was in the truck, State Trooper Ryan Sullivan said.
No other vehicles were involved in the crash.
The driver lost control of the truck, which was carrying an undetermined substance, and was unable to stop before it tipped over in the eastbound lanes of I-70 near the Red Rocks Amphitheatre exit.
Crash investigators were trying to determine why the rig exploded, leaving a charred mass and burned pavement.
“You can’t even make out the truck, it was completely burned,” Sullivan said.
The crash occurred about 6:30 p.m., and authorities immediately shut down the eastbound lanes to extinguish the burning rig.
The westbound lanes of I-70 were covered with an undetermined brown mudlike substance that came from the truck, and authorities initially feared it to be a hazardous material and closed the lanes.
Later, it was believed to be material used to cool drilling bits.
The westbound lanes were reopened after 8:30 p.m., but eastbound lanes were expected to remain closed through early today, Sullivan said.
The truck tipped over on a decline just before getting to a runaway-truck ramp and landed on the steep side of Mount Vernon Canyon.
The Foothills Fire Department, MetroWest Fire Department and the Genesee Fire Department were all dispatched to the scene.
Investigators will try to determine whether the truck’s brakes failed on the downhill slope or whether other factors led to the crash.
It had not been determined what caused the explosion, but Sullivan said the ignition of diesel fuel most likely caused the fireball.
Online: Updated traffic conditions on I-70
