Brooklyn’s morning commute was disrupted on Tuesday when a cement truck overturned near Grand Army Plaza, leaving the driver with minor injuries.
The truck tipped and fell on its side while driving southbound on Flatbush Avenue toward Prospect Park at about 8:15 a.m, according to first responders.
Firefighters on the scene discovered that the vehicle’s gas tank had ruptured and called for help from the FDNY’s HAZMAT units.
Emergency responders transported the driver of the truck to Methodist Hospital where he was treated for minor injuries, according to the FDNY. The cause of the overturn was not immediately clear, and the New York City Police Department had not yet received a crash report as of Tuesday afternoon, according to a spokesperson.
Grand Army Plaza, centered on the 50-foot-tall Soldiers and Sailors Arch, sits at the northwestern tip of Prospect Park, and represents the confluence of several major thoroughfares, including Flatbush Avenue, Eastern Parkway, and Prospect Park West.
The traffic circle is particularly hazardous for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists, with 59 crashes injuring some 89 people in the last five years, according to CrashMapper. In the past decade, 148 people have been injured in collisions at the circle, including 96 motorists, 28 cyclists, and 24 pedestrians.
