ELIZABETH TOWNSHIP - Traffic was disrupted and houses within a half-mile radius were evacuated yesterday morning after a tanker carrying diesel fuel overturned on State Route 93, just south of State Route 373.

The driver of the tanker,

39-year-old Preston Kerns of Chesapeake, apparently veered off the pavement and struck a bridge abutment and a utility pole before he hit a tree and his rig overturned. Kerns was taken to King's Daughters Medical Center in Ashland, Ky. Kerns is a driver for Usher Transport of Metropolis, Ill.

"He's lucky (to be alive) in that truck right there," Elizabeth Township Fire Department Capt. Ralph Joseph said as he surveyed the twisted wreckage.

Approximately 50 gallons of diesel fuel was spilled as a result of the crash.

Due to the fuel spill and downed power lines, the Elizabeth Township Volunteer Fire Department asked for assistance from a hazardous materials team from Marathon Ashland Petroleum in Catlettsburg, Ky. Also, a crew from American Electric Power was brought in to repair the power pole and lines, and assisted with scene safety.

State Route 93 was closed for approximately two hours and was later restricted to one lane as crews worked to clean up the diesel fuel. The route reopened to traffic later in the evening.