A tractor-trailer driver is in critical condition after a tire exploded in his face when his truck caught fire, DeKalb fire officials said.
Fire officials got a call just before 9 p.m. about a tractor-trailer caught fire along I-285 near Chamblee-Dunwoody Road, DeKalb fire spokesman Capt. Eric Jackson told Channel 2 Action News. The truck was carrying oxygen tanks.
“The driver got out to check on the brake and when he did, the tire on the truck exploded in his face due to the fire and heat caused by the brake fire,” he said.
Neighbors told Channel 2 Action News they heard several explosions before the fire occurred.
“I saw the smoke, It was just..you could see it,” Neighbor Alex Perry told the news station. “You could feel it…The whole thing was on fire. The whole thing. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
The driver, whose name has not been released, was taken to the hospital and is in critical condition, Jackson said.
Earlier, the fire closed east and westbound lanes along I-285.
Support real journalism. Support local journalism. Subscribe to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today. See offers.
Your subscription to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution funds in-depth reporting and investigations that keep you informed. Thank you for supporting real journalism.
Download the new AJC app. More local news, more breaking news and in-depth journalism. AJC.com. Atlanta. News. Now.
Download the new AJC app. More local news, more breaking news and in-depth journalism. AJC.com. Atlanta. News. Now.
With the largest team in the state, the AJC reports what’s really going on with your tax dollars and your elected officials. Subscribe today. Visit the AJC's Georgia Navigator for the latest in Georgia politics.
Your subscription to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution funds in-depth reporting and investigations that keep you informed. Thank you for supporting real journalism. Visit the AJC's Georgia Navigator for the latest in Georgia politics.