Overturned Truck Spills Liquid Nitrogen In Maine

An eerie scene was captured on a Maine street on Wednesday after a commercial truck overturned and released its load of liquid nitrogen.

The Rockport Fire Department said emergency crews responded to a report of an overturned commercial truck on Rockland Street Wednesday morning, and they arrived to find the truck surrounded by an eerie white fog. The driver of the truck was able to self-extricate and was assessed at the scene.

Crews established a safety perimeter and contacted the truck company’s operations manager, who confirmed the truck was carrying a load of liquid nitrogen, and provided safety guidance for first responders and nearby residents.

Photos shared by the fire department show the cloud of nitrogen vapors surrounding the overturned truck.

The fire department said “no explosive concentrations were detected” and there was no environmental hazard.

Rockland street was closed for more than six hours. The trailer’s “safety mechanism” allowed “controlled venting” of the liquid nitrogen, fire officials said. The vapors slowly dispersed, and the scene was “safe for crews at a distance.”

“The company’s Transport Manager and Maine DEP assessed the scene and agreed to allow the nitrogen to continue evaporating until the tank was empty and safe to upright,” the fire department said.