Tragic moment frozen in time

Historic City News reader Loren Townsend Zawawi captured images of the “clean-up” in progress at ground-zero of Friday evening’s gasoline tank explosion at the intersection of SR-16 and Masters Drive; reporting conditions that mirror those of a small war zone.

St. Johns County Sheriff’s spokesperson, Sgt. Chuck Mulligan, told Historic City News that although SR-16 traffic has resumed as of Sunday, the north section of Masters Drive might remain closed throughout this week due to the ongoing clean-up operation.

There is little left standing of the 5th Wheel BP gas station; the perimeter of the above-ground fuel storage tanks remain bordered by yellow crime scene tape. Fire officials are calling the store and appurtenant building a total loss.

Vehicles, both inside the auto repair shop and outside the gas station, appear frozen in time. Their charred remains give a clue to even the casual observer of the life-threatening, tragic scene; where in a matter of moments, things went from “bad” to “worse” — when a series of explosions led to an all-consuming inferno that sent flames high enough above the tree line as to be visible from several miles away.

School resumed yesterday and Mulligan cautioned drivers in the immediate area surrounding the incident to use extra caution and seek alternate routes when traveling — especially in school bus and rush hour traffic.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, whose investigators have been on the scene since the explosion and fire began on Friday evening, are reporting that, even though contamination is apparent in the marsh surrounding the site, the flammable fuels have been evacuated from the area rendering the condition on the ground as “stable”.

An absorbent boom cast into the marsh, both to contain the petroleum products that spilled during the incident and to collect anything else that might make its way to the water, remains in place.

Photo credits: © 2011 Historic City News contributed photograph by Loren Townsend Zawawi