Sometimes eating a big ol’ sopping wet Chicago Italian Beef sandwich can have seriously adverse consequences as one box truck driver found out after his rig exploded on the suburb of Addison, Illinois. I’m kidding, obviously, and luckily there were no serious injuries, but that doesn’t change the fact that a truck exploded in a nearly comical way and damaged a handful of houses.
The Penske box truck popped, leaving a field of debris for over a block. The explosion also damaged four houses — leaving one temporarily uninhabitable because of the damage, according to CBS News. Apparently, one of the truck’s walls hit a load-bearing wall of a nearby house, and it pushed it two to four feet inward. That is a gnarly blast (though not the gnarliest this year). The family was in the house at the time of the explosion, but they were unharmed.
Somehow, the driver only sustained minor injuries, and I cannot for the life of me understand how that happened. He was actually walking around the truck when first responders arrived at the bizarre scene, before being taken to the hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
What the hell happened?
The video, as I’m sure you’ve already watched by now, is rather dramatic. Ring camera footage taken from a nearby home shows the truck driving down the road without incident and then… BANG.
Police tell CBS news that the DuPage County Bomb Squad and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives determined that the explosion was caused by a leaking propane tank in the cargo area of the truck.
Penske released the following statement to CBS News:
“The vehicle involved in this incident was rented out to a customer who was moving household personal belongings. Penske will cooperate fully with any further investigation by law enforcement. Under Penske’s rental agreement, explosive, flammable or otherwise hazardous materials should not be transported in a consumer rental moving truck.”
One homeowner in the area told ABC 7 Chicago that he thought people had started setting off Memorial Day fireworks a bit early, saying that “one sure seems to have a little extra punch.” Yeah, man. I’d say so.
Let this be a warning to all of you: make sure to take some Peptobismal before you have a sloppy Italian Beef.
