Nine Los Angeles firefighters were injured when a compressed natural gas tank on a burning truck exploded Thursday morning on a street in Wilmington.
The powerful explosion that sent a fireball into the air was reported at about 7 a.m. Firefighters initially responded to the location near a truck yard next to a residential neighborhood after a call about the truck fire.
About six minutes later, nine firefighters who were putting out the fire were injured when one of the truck's two compressed natural gas tanks exploded. At least two firefighters were hospitalized in critical condition. Other people were being assessed for injuries at the scene.
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"The unique aspect of this vehicle is that it's not run on diesel or gasoline, but it is actually propelled with CNG, or compressed natural gas," said LAFD Capt. Erik Scott. "The explosion was significant. The ball of flame was as high as these telephone poles."
Two 100-gallon compressed natural gas tanks were on the truck, the LAFD said. Firefighters remained at the scene to release gas from the second tank on the burned out truck.
The explosion left debris scattered in the street. Video from NBC Los Angeles showed several fire engines at the scene and the wreckage of the burned truck near a rail crossing. Security camera video showed a fireball rising into the sky over the South Bay community.
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"Frankly, it's remarkable that none of them were more severely injured after watching the footage," said Molly R. Deane, of Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley said one of the critically injured firefighters was stable, but will stay at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center for additional observation.
"He was awake and alert and talking," Crowley said.
The second critically injured firefighter was intubated and transferred to Los Angeles General Medical Center for treatment at a burn unit.
The truck driver was not injured. The driver called 911 after noticing something wrong with the truck, firefighters said.
Compressed natural gas (CNG) is a fuel gas composed mainly of methane that is stored in hard pressurized containers.
CNG vehicles have spark-ignited internal combustion engines, much like gasoline-powered vehicles. The CNG that powers the vehicle is stored in a cylinder that supplies fuel to fuel lines, which have a pressure regulator. The CNG eventually enters a combustion chamber, where it mixes with air and is compressed and ignited by a spark plug.
