Tanker Fire Update: Rt. 8 Open, Crash Victim Identified
Written by Jeanne DestroUPDATE: 7:47 AM, Tuesday, August 26, 2020
Update: 5PM, Monday, August 25, 2020
City of Akron and ODOT repair crews are working on State Route 8 North at the site of the fiery crash which this morning closed both sides of the highway, when a car and gasoline tanker truck colided. While the driver of the truck escaped injury; the driver of the car, whose name is being withheld pending notification of family, was killed.
The highway was damaged. Toxic waste was discharged into the river near the high level bridge through a city storm sewer. Summit Metro Parks has suspended fishing in the area until August 29th, as a precaution.
Cleanup is underway, and Route 8 Northbound between Tallmadge Avenue and Howe Avenue is down to one lane while they work on repairs through 10:00 this evening (Tuesday), so expect delays in that area.
More details here, in the City of Akron's Press release:
Akron, Ohio, August 25, 2020 (4:00 PM)—Akron Police and Fire responded to Route 8 N between Tallmadge Ave. and Cuyahoga Falls Ave. for a vehicle crash involving a car and a gasoline tanker at 7:44 a.m. The collision resulted in a tanker truck fire causing Route 8 north and southbound traffic to be diverted for several hours. Fire companies reported heavy smoke from the scene and deployed the Haz-Mat and Foam Truck to the scene for additional resources to handle the fire.
Due to the dangerous conditions of fire and toxic gas in the area, residents and businesses were notified just before 8:00 a.m. for evacuation. Approximately 100 homes in the area were contacted for evacuation and safety purposes. Metro RTA buses were available for residents to temporarily evacuate at a safe distance. Akron Police, Ohio State Patrol and University of Akron Police were on scene to re-direct traffic, assist with evacuations, and crash scene investigation. Additional Akron Fire personnel were on hand to monitor gas levels inside of homes near the crash site. Any residents who smell the odor of gas throughout the evening are encouraged to call 9-1-1 so Akron Fire may come out and measure gas levels.
The crash scene is still being processed for evidence by the Akron Police Accident Reconstruction Unit and remains under investigation.
Due to the severity of the crash, there was one fatality, the driver of the car. The driver of the tanker truck did not sustain any serious injuries. The Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct an autopsy. The victim’s name is being withheld pending positive identification and family notifications.
The fire also impacted City of Akron infrastructure. The accident site was very near to a storm sewer inlet. Some of the gasoline leaked from the tanker and entered this storm sewer and traveled within the sewer pipe to its discharge point at the Cuyahoga River near the High Level Bridge. The Akron Fire Department utilized flame retardant foam to reduce the flames and break down the gasoline. An emergency environmental remediation company, on behalf of the tanker company, is performing additional remediation work, including placing absorbent booms which restrict access to the affected place along the River. Summit Metro Parks has suspended fishing in the area until August 29th, as a precaution. For more information about any temporary impact on recreation at this location of the River, please visit the Summit Metro Parks, Park &Trail Alerts page at www.summitmetroparks.org/summit-metro-parks-alerts.
The affected storm sewer carries rainwater from the roadway and into a discharge point of the Cuyahoga River nearby. This pipe is not a combined sewer pipe and does not connect to residential sanitary sewer drains. The City will be conducting an assessment of any damage to this storm sewer and making any necessary repairs.
The large fire also severely damaged the roadway of Route 8 northbound. As soon as the wreckage recovery and removal was complete, City contractors began emergency work to repair and repave the damaged portion of the road, in coordination with the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT). State Route 8 northbound between Tallmadge Ave. and Howe Ave. will be reduced to one lane today, August 25, starting at 4:00 p.m. through 10:00 p.m. tonight for pavement repairs. Motorists can expect delays.
“I am incredibly proud of the organized and professional response from our emergency responders today,” Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said. “Akron Police, Akron Fire and our Service Department crews, in coordination with many of our local partners, worked diligently and efficiently to reduce the risks and impacts of this serious and tragic event on the public.”
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Original post: 10:15 AM, Tuesday, August 25, 2020
Rt 8 North between Tallmadge Avenue and Howe Avenue still blocked after a fiery crash involving a tanker truck and a car. At this time, it is still burning.
Get the latest details with WAKR's Jeanne Destro, as she talks with Akron Fire Department Spokesperson, Lt. Sierjie Lash.
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Another Homicide Hours After Mayor, Chief of Police Address Violent Trend in Akron
Written by Ryan LangJust hours after Mayor Dan Horrigan and Police Chief Ken Ball addressed citizens of Akron about the increase in deadly gun violence in the city over the course of this year, Akron logged its 34th homicide of 2020.
Police were called to the area of Maryland Avenue and 5th Street Southwest, along the train tracks, about 5 p.m. Tuesday about a woman who was shot. There they found the yet unnamed 22-year-old woman dead from an apparent gunshot wound. Wednesday, the Summit County Medical Examiner confirmed the cause of death was in fact homicide.
It is now mid-August and Akron has already surpassed 2019's total homicide count of 33.
Earlier Tuesday, in a video posted to Facebook, Mayor Horrigan and Chief Ball talked about what efforts the city and the police force are making to curtail the violence. Watch that "community update" here now.
"This cannot continue. We have to reverse this trend and interrupt the cycle of violence," Mayor Horrigan said.
The homicide rate is up by 50 percent with the number of "shots fired" calls to police up by 25 percent, according to Chief Ball. He says that the department is taking a data-driven approach to the violence in the city, and focusing on individuals they know to be associated with recent gun violence and other criminal activity, as opposed to a sweeping approach.
Another disturbing trend, as Chief Ball points out, is the number of young people involved in violent crime, both victims and suspects. "We haven't been able to quantify it yet, because it a statistic that hasn't been traced up to this point, but we are seeing many more 12, 13, and 14-year-olds being arrested with firearms," Chief Ball said.
On the opposite end of that trend, the victims. Now five children have been killed in the city over the course of this year. Most recently, eight-year-old Mikayla Pickett was shot during a party at a home on Roselle Avenue just before midnight Friday, August 14th. At that same party, a 14-year-old girl was shot in the leg. She suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Akron Police say they have no suspects yet, but are narrowing their search based on interviews with people at the party that was mostly attended by teens.
More...
The Summit County Sheriff's Office is investigating several incidents in the City of Green over the past couple of weeks, including breaking and entering, assaults, burglary, theft, and more.
One incident in question dates back to August 11, when a Sheriff's Deputy stopped a vehicle in the city for a moving violation and after running the plate found that it was a stolen truck out of Norton. A subsequent search of several properties in Akron and Green turned up sixteen vehicles that were reported stolen. Mark Manning, 64, of Akron was arrested on multiple charges.
Last Friday morning, August 14th, at 10 a.m., Sheriff's Deputies responded to a home on Mayfair Road where a woman reported a burglary. She told deputies that a man kicked open her front door, holding her and her four-year-old daughter against their will, punching the woman, and demanding items from the home. The suspect left, but told the woman that he would return with a gun and shoot her, after which she called 911. The Sheriff's Office is reporting they later arrested 36-year-old Erion R. Feaster of Green at a home in Kenmore. He was hiding in an upstairs bedroom; arrested on Aggravated Burglary charges.
Later Friday the 14th, around 5 p.m., the Sheriff's Office responded to a home on Northwood Drive in Green for another robbery. The female victim told deputies that she confronted two young men breaking into her car that was parked in the driveway. The two men got away with a laptop, but not before assaulting the woman. They are described as white males in their late teens or early 20's, both who were wearing face coverings, one that had a skull and crossbones symbol on it.
The two incidents last Friday happened just days after a homeowner on Graybill Road held a woman at gunpoint after she broke into his home in the middle of the night. Thirty-year-old Megan Ryland has been charged with burglary and more in that case.
It does not appear that any of the incidents in this story are related.