1 dead in fiery semi-truck-to-car accident in New Haven – NBC Connecticut

One person was killed in a fiery crash between a semi-truck and a car in New Haven early Saturday morning.

The accident occurred just after 3 a.m. on Route 80.

Fire officials said the accident resulted in a car fire. While firefighters extinguished the car fire, the high flames burned down the power lines.

The male driver of the car was taken to Yale New Haven Hospital and pronounced dead. His identity has not been released.

The driver of the tractor-trailer reported no injuries.

According to the fire department, the semi-truck was filled with compressed cardboard and firefighters worked for hours to put out the flames.

“It’s not just the compacted cardboard. This is the only part of town where fire hydrants are a little scarce just because of the intersecting highways and the river, so a lot of hoses have been laid to compensate for the lack of fire hydrants,” said Dan Coughlin, assistant chief of the fire department from New Haven.

The accident also resulted in 100 gallons of diesel fuel spilling into a nearby body of water. The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the Coast Guard have been notified and are working to contain the spill.

The road is currently closed in both directions and is expected to remain closed for several hours.