Officials: Arizona Spill Likely Not Due to Speed or Alcohol

Officials: Arizona Spill Likely Not Due to Speed or Alcohol
An accident involving a commercial tanker truck causes a hazardous material to leak onto Interstate 10 outside Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 14, 2023. Arizona Department of Public Safety via AP
The Associated Press
Updated:

TUCSON, Ariz.—The deadly truck accident this week that caused a hazardous materials spill southeast of downtown Tucson this week did not appear to be caused by high speed, drugs or alcohol, Arizona Department of Public Safety officials said Thursday.

The authorities said at a news conference that truck driver Ricky Immel, 54, was traveling from his home state of Nevada to Alabama with a load of packages of liquid nitric acid Tuesday afternoon when his vehicle left the roadway and flipped onto the left side, then into the median. Immel was later declared dead at the scene.