Burning tanker closes Trans-America

A gasoline tanker truck caught fire at dawn on Thursday, March 16, after colliding with a tree on the Inter-American highway, in front of the Mariano Prado Araúz High School near the district of Natá, in Coclé province.

The driver and his assistant were unharmed, reported Ángel Delgado, from the Fire Department.

The alert was received at about 4:40 a.m. The collision occurred when the driver lost control, hit a tree, and damaged a power line Delgado explained.

The Natá and Aguadulce firefighters closed four lanes of the Trans-America Highway while they worked for two hours to control the fire, affecting hundreds of drivers heading to Panama City or other provinces.