MOORESVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA — A tanker truck driver reported a leak on his vehicle to his company approximately 20 minutes before the truck exploded outside a beverage plant in Mooresville, killing him and injuring a female plant employee, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
The explosion occurred at approximately 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday, April 7, outside the Carolina Beverage Group facility off Barley Park Lane in Mooresville. The tanker was carrying 1,100 gallons of sodium hydroxide, a chemical commonly used as an industrial cleaner. The driver arrived at the plant for a delivery, got out of his truck, noticed a leak on the tanker, and reported it to his company. Twenty minutes later, the cargo tank exploded, separating the back compartment from the tank. First responders found the driver’s body in the area of the blast.
A female plant employee who was in the blast radius sustained injuries and was transported to a hospital in Charlotte. Her condition has not been made public. The identities of both the driver and the injured employee have not been released.
The NTSB announced its investigation on Wednesday, April 8, and said investigators will be on site for three to four days. The agency expects to release preliminary findings within 30 days.
Local trucker Matthew Tatum, who frequently hauls hazmat loads, said the situation underscores the importance of proper hazmat training. “Normally in a situation like that if you spot something like that, you’d want to at least clear the area out and try to call emergency services as soon as possible,” Tatum said. “There’s a lot of people out here that don’t know what the dangers are of what we haul.”
Carolina Beverage Group operates three locations, including facilities in Mooresville, Minnesota, and Texas. The Mooresville facility was built in 1997 and produces canned beverages.
Anyone with information relevant to the investigation is asked to email the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov.
📸 Image(s) used under fair use for news reporting.
