LYNN — A home was deemed unlivable and about 100 gallons of diesel fuel spilled onto the street after a tractor-trailer truck crashed into a house and four parked vehicles on Western Avenue early Tuesday morning.
The crash happened at around 5:20 a.m. at 182 Western Ave. An 18-wheeler tractor-trailer truck was heading to Salem to deliver frozen produce.
The driver of the truck told the Lynn Fire Department and the police that he was trying to avoid hitting some animal, possibly a raccoon.
As a result of his maneuvers, the truck veered off the road, hit four parked passenger cars, pushed one of the parked cars into a residential house and severed a telephone pole.
No one was hurt in the accident. A family of seven lived in the two-family home that got damaged.
“It’s a miracle that nobody was injured or killed. If this happened a couple hours later when kids are going to school, it would have been a lot different,” said Capt. Joseph Zukas, spokesperson for the Lynn Fire Department.
When the fire department arrived, crews saw a very chaotic scene, said Zukas. Engine 10 of the Broadway fire station responded to the call and an additional ladder and an ambulance were also dispatched. A safety officer and the district chief were also at the scene.
As a result of the crash, approximately 200-gallon fuel tanks of the truck got punctured and about 100 gallons of diesel spilled onto the street and spread over a couple of blocks, Zukas said.
Flammable diesel vapors and downed wires created an electrical hazard, Zukas said. The firefighters used about 25 bags of Speedy Dry oil absorbent, and about 75 gallons of diesel were recovered.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection sent a cleaning company that came to the scene to evaluate the spill and further clean the area.
G/J Towing company from Revere came to assist with clearing the scene.
“They did a great job with their tow tracks and some heavy-duty equipment to help remove the vehicle from the front of the house,” Zukas said.
Representatives of the city’s Inspectional Services Department (ISD) came to examine the house and determined it was uninhabitable until further review, because the crash caused a crack in the foundation. The front porch is completely demolished, Zukas said, and the second-floor balcony is hanging without proper support.
“So the front entrance of the home is unusable,”said Zukas.
The severed pole had several cable and internet transformers on it. There was a minor power outage in the area, because the truck pulled electrical wires from the damaged house and another home to the right of it.
National Grid was working at the scene at around 9 a.m. to repair the pole and try to get the power back on, said Police Lt. Glenn Dunnigan.
Western Avenue was closed between Chatham and Chestnut streets for about three and a half hours. The traffic in both directions was restored at around 8:15 a.m., police said.
The driver of the truck is being cited for either reckless operation or driving to endanger, Dunnigan said.
