MOUNT JEWETT – A Duke Center man was killed when the
tractor-trailer truck he was driving rolled over and burst into
flames at 11:50 p.m. Friday on U.S. Route 6 on Hazel Hurst hill,
just east of Lindholm Road in Hamlin Township.

According to Kane-based state police, a tractor-trailer driven
by Donald J. Causer, 39, was eastbound on Route 6 when the rig
began to slide while making a left curve in the road. The
tractor-trailer then rolled over onto its roof and slid into an
embankment along the south berm.

Police said the tractor-trailer continued to slide east along
the road and caught on fire as the tanker ruptured. The truck then
came to rest along a berm, upside down.

Causer died as a result of the accident. McKean County Coroner
Mike Cahill said Causer died as a result of blunt force trauma.

According to Mount Jewett Volunteer Fire Chief Craig Simons, the
Mount Jewett Volunteer, Hamlin Township Volunteer, Kane Volunteer,
Highland Township Volunteer, Smethport, Port Allegany, Clermont
Volunteer, Lafayette Township Volunteer and Norwich Township
Volunteer fire departments responded to the blaze, which also
included the departments that were on stand-by at some of the
stations.

According to Simons, 50 to 80 firefighters and about 15 fire
apparatus from various departments arrived on the scene. Simons
said firefighters took until about noon Saturday to finally
extinguish the fire.

McKean County Emergency Management Agency Director Steve Nelson
said Sunday the agency helped coordinate a clean-up along with the
state Department of Environmental Protection.

Nelson said it was up to the trucking company to help clean up
the mess, adding DEP was slated to test the soil sometime Sunday or
today to make sure there’s no soil replacement needed.

He said there was some gasoline left in the remnants of the
truck, and EAP Industries of Titusville sent in a tanker truck to
clean that up. Nelson said most of the fuel burned off, and the
rest was washed away.

“I’m not sure how long its been, but its been a while,” Nelson
said about the last time an accident like this has taken place. “It
hasn’t been since I’ve been the director, and when I was deputy
director, there was a spill. But there hasn’t been a fire.”

Nelson said the accident was in an extremely remote area with no
residents near it. There was some damage done to grass and trees,
however.

He said the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation was doing
a survey of the area since there was some damage done to the road
surface.

PennDOT’s McKean County Maintenance Manager Patricia Shinaberger
said the agency will be evaluating the damage done to the road
today, adding she knew there was damage done to the pavement and
guide rails, but had no further information on any other damage
that might have been caused by the accident.

The road was closed and re-opened around 12:30 p.m. Saturday,
according to state police.

The case remains under investigation, state police said.