Dec 2, 2006 5:27 pm US/Eastern
Two Dead In Turnpike Accident With Semi-Truck
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
Two people were killed in an accident Saturday that caused Florida's Turnpike to close in southwest Miami-Dade when their car was hit by a truck carrying toxic material.
Police say 52-year-old Gilberto Suarez and 24-year-old Anibal Cruz were traveling southbound in a pick-up truck when they were rear-ended by 37-year-old Evan Miranda who was pulling a flatbed truck loaded with sod. Suarez and Cruz were killed on impact according to officials.
''The pick-up truck was about to pull over onto the right shoulder and was partially out of the roadway,'' said Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Pat Santangelo. ``The other truck did not notice and hit it.''
After the crash, officials say, the truck spilled muriatic acid that spilled all over the road.
Suarez and Cruz worked for a pool company and were on their way to a work site when the accident took place.
Rescuers say the impact from the crash, not the toxic acid, killed the victims.
Muriatic acid, according to officials is a strong, corrosive, inorganic acid (HCl), manufactured by absorbing hydrogen chloride in water. It is the same chemical as Hydrochloric Acid.
Uses include cleaning brick, etching concrete, cleaning metal and for swimming pool maintenance. Will attack varnish, fabrics, metals, plastics, most paints and many other materials. Can be diluted with water.
Both lanes of the Turnpike were closed while hazmat officials cleaned up the spill.
All roads have been re-opened.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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