Vermont State Police said a propane tanker fire is still burning more than 24 hours after crashing into a river off Route 14 in Irasburg.
State police said in a press release shortly after 8:30 a.m. Monday that routes 14 and 58 in Irasburg were closed, along with several other roads in the area. Road closures were expected to continue for a "significant time," they said.
Police said a propane tanker went off the Route 14 bridge over the Black River around 6:50 a.m. and caught fire. The state said the propane was still burning on Tuesday morning and is expected to continue burning at least through the end of the day.
"FIRST RESPONDERS ARE BEING PUSHED BACK DUE TO THE POTENTIAL FOR ADDITIONAL EXPLOSIONS IN THE AREA," state police said in an email Monday. "RESIDENTS IN THE AREA ARE BEING EVACUATED."
The Irasburg Fire Department shared a photo of the crash on Facebook around 8:50 a.m. Monday:
The fire department said homes within a mile of the incident were evacuated.
Inspection of the truck by drone revealed a puncture in the side of the 10,000-gallon liquid propane gas tanker, significantly reducing the possibility of a catastrophic explosion, state police said. But due to the damage, the fire was expected to continue to burn until all of the propane has been exhausted.
State police said in an update late Monday afternoon that the evacuations and closures were expected to remain in place overnight as the fire continued to burn. An evacuation shelter was opened at Irasburg Town Hall for those residents impacted by the incident but no one used it, so the Red Cross has put it on standby.
Due to the decreased risk of explosion, the evacuation radius has been reduced to 0.6 miles.
A hazmat team was activated and an expert from New Hampshire also responded to the scene.
Additional updates will be provided as details become available, police said. Motorists are being told to expect delays and seek alternate routes.
The crash is being investigated by the state Department of Motor Vehicles Enforcement and Safety Division.
Irasburg is a town of about 150 residents in Orleans County, located in northern Vermont about 20 miles from the Canadian border.
