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Tanker truck overturns, explodes on Maryland highway, photos show; driver hospitalized

A tanker truck overturned and exploded in Maryland early Friday morning on March 24, 2023, according to the Baltimore County Fire Department.
A tanker truck overturned and exploded in Maryland early Friday morning on March 24, 2023, according to the Baltimore County Fire Department.

A tanker truck overturned and exploded on a Maryland highway early Friday morning, according to the Baltimore County Fire Department.

The tanker, which became engulfed in flames when the incident occurred around 6 a.m., sent billows of smoke through the air, according to Fox Baltimore.

The truck’s driver is in serious condition and was sent to the University of Maryland R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center.

Crews were able to put out the fire, the department tweeted around 9 a.m., and officials have asked people in the Owing Mills area to continue to avoid the area. Staffers were working with Maryland Department of the Environment the contain diesel fuel that spilled from the tanker.

Officials expected there would be no environmental impact, due to containment of the fuel from the 8,500-gallon tanker truck.

The incident shut down both the inner and outer loops of I-795 Northbound and is expected to impact traffic for an "extended period," officials added.

USA TODAY has reached out to the Maryland Department of the Environment.

Camille Fine is a trending visual producer on USA TODAY's NOW team. 

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tanker truck fire, explosion on I-795 in Maryland shuts down highway