A driver died this Thursday after the tanker truck he was operating lost control, overturned, and caught fire on Florida's Turnpike, near Bird Road, in the southwest of Miami-Dade. The accident resulted in a complete closure of the highway in both directions and caused significant traffic congestion.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), the incident occurred shortly before 10:30 in the morning in the southbound lanes, near mile marker 23, corresponding to the exit for Bird Road (SW 40th Street).
"The truck lost control, overturned, and crashed into the concrete barrier of the central median," reported the FHP in a statement quoted by NBC Miami.
The driver died at the scene of the accident. So far, authorities have not disclosed their identity.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue teams quickly responded to extinguish the fire, which nearly completely consumed the vehicle. Aerial images captured by the Sky 10 helicopter from Local 10 showed the truck reduced to a charred structure while firefighters continued to cool the remnants, with a light column of smoke still rising from the site.
Videos and images shared from the scene also showed long lines of vehicles halted in both directions on the highway due to the complete closure of the road.
Authorities have advised drivers to take alternate routes while the removal of the vehicle and the investigation of the accident are ongoing.
At the moment, the FHP has not determined what caused the truck to lose control nor has it announced when the highway will be fully reopened.
The Turnpike has been the site of other fatal accidents in recent years. In August 2025, a truck driver who made an illegal turn caused a crash that resulted in the deaths of three people and subsequently faced charges of vehicular homicide. Months earlier, in January of that same year, a collision between two trucks on another stretch of the highway left a woman deceased.
The investigation into the causes of the incident is still ongoing.
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