Route 93 remains closed after fiery crash; Road damaged when truck loses control, catches fire
Route 93 in Nesquehoning remains closed following a tractor-trailer crash and fire Thursday night.
The incident happened just before 7:30 p.m. between the Carbon County Correctional Facility and the runaway truck ramp.
Emergency crews were called for a vehicle fire after the rig lost control as it descended the mountain and rolled into the northbound lane. After coming to rest against the guide rail, the truck caught fire.
Nesquehoning Hose Company, New Columbus, Hauto, Jim Thorpe and Weatherly fire departments, as well as Lehighton and Mahoning Valley Ambulance and Nesquehoning police responded to the scene.
The driver, who has not yet been identified, was transported to a Lehigh Valley hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Borough fire police set up traffic control at the bottom of Route 93 at the 209 intersection.
Police Chief Michael Weaver said Friday morning that a witness who was following the rig last night, said the driver didn’t stop at the truck pull-off at the top of the mountain.
The driver then lost control around a curve.
“He couldn’t handle the curve with the weight of his load and the speed,” Weaver said.
Weaver said the items the rig was carrying were cookies and a soap product. The soap made the road slick.
He said that Pennsylvania Department of Transportation officials don’t have a time frame as to how long it will take crews to replace the guide rail and repair the road.
Nesquehoning police will post on its Facebook page when the road reopens.
In 2016, Nesquehoning dealt with three tractor-trailer crashes in a week that caused the state to look at alternate routes for rigs.
In 2017, PennDOT announced a detour for tractor-trailers that would take them off Route 93 at Route 424 in Hazle Township and onto Route 309 in McAdoo before picking up Route 54 in Hometown and back to Route 209 in Nesquehoning.
Weaver said that trucks, depending on their size and width, are still permitted to travel down Route 93 into Nesquehoning, but they are required to first stop at the pull-off at the top of the mountain.