Truck spills hazardous material in Tucson, Arizona, shutting down highway

TUCSON, Ariz. – Both directions of Interstate 10 remained closed in a portion of Arizona Wednesday after a tractor-trailer's deadly rollover triggered a hazardous chemical leak incident Tuesday afternoon.

Authorities ordered a shelter-in-place for a three-mile perimeter around the incident Wednesday morning,  according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The department lifted the shelter-in-place order Tuesday night, but reinstated it for a one-mile perimeter  early Wednesday after gassing occurred as crews attempted to remove the load and later expanded the perimeter.

Those within half a mile of  the crash were evacuated Tuesday and  should expect to remain displaced until around midday Wednesday, public safety authorities said.

The driver of the truck, which was hauling a box trailer, died sometime after the accident.

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The Tucson Fire Department tweeted the hazardous material was nitric acid, described by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a highly corrosive material that can irritate one's skin, eyes and mucous membrane if exposed.

Nitric acid is used to make ammonium nitrate for fertilizers and in the manufacturing of plastics and dyes.

Heaters or air-conditioning systems pulling air from the outside were ordered to be turned off as motorists were urged to find an alternate route Wednesday, authorities said.

The Vail School District on Wednesday canceled school for five campuses and halted bus services to areas affected by the shelter-in-place order.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department instructed all personnel at the University of Arizona Tech Park to evacuate on Tuesday, according to university police.

Overnight weather conditions set back hazardous material recovery and mitigation, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said Wednesday. Crews have removed the tractor-trailer's material, using dirt to mitigate further gassing. 

Authorities have not yet stated a cause for the crash. 

 Last week, a train derailment in Ohio caused a chemical fire and forced evacuations as hazmat teams burned tankers filled with vinyl chloride, sending hydrogen chloride and the toxic gas phosgene into the air. The Ohio evacuations were lifted after officials deemed the air quality to be safe.

Contributing: The Associated Press