911 tapes reveal tense moments following tanker explosion

By Scott Leamon
WSLS10 Reporter
Published: July 14, 2008

  10 On Your Side obtained several 911 calls into the Roanoke emergency dispatch center just moments after the tanker explosion Saturday night on Route 220.

  The tapes outline how for several minutes callers did not know whether it was a train derailment or vehicle fire.

  Some calls came in from as far as away as Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital and the Mill Mountain Star.

  Firefighters said they knew two things as they were speeding to the scene.

  One- they had a huge fire on their hands.

  And two- they got very lucky.

  Firefighters say the tanker crashed and exploded in an area off Route 220 where there were no businesses or homes in the immediate area.

  At first, firefighters had no idea what was burning.

  Whether it was a possibly hazardous gas, corrosive material, or vapor.

  Luck changed when a firefighter happened to look down on the ground and found the truck driver’s log book.

  The log book told firefighters what the driver was carrying and how much.

  It was 8,500 gallons of gasoline.

  Once firefighters found the log book, they changed strategy and backed off the fire.

  Letting it burn itself out was safer for the environment, according to Roanoke deputy fire chief Ralph Tartaglia.

  You can hear the 911 calls in the “related links” section above.