No Injuries as Jeep Bursts Into Flames After Rear-Ending Semi on Highway 97
A Jeep caught fire after rear-ending a tractor-trailer on Highway 97 near Walnut Hill Wednesday, but both drivers escaped without injury.
No one was injured in a fiery crash Wednesday afternoon on Highway 97 south of Walnut Hill, according to authorities.
The driver of a northbound Jeep Renegade rear-ended a tractor-trailer on Highway 97 just north of Tungoil Road shortly after 3 p.m. The Jeep continued across the southbound lane, through a ditch, and came to rest in a field, where it caught fire and was destroyed. The driver was able to escape the vehicle before it burned. The tractor-trailer came to a stop on the shoulder of Highway 97. Both drivers refused transport by Escambia County EMS.
Crews from the Molino Station of Escambia County Fire Rescue, with assistance from the ECFR Walnut Hill Station, quickly extinguished the fire. The Florida Highway Patrol investigated the crash, which closed both the northbound and southbound lanes of Highway 97 for a short time.
The investigation
The Florida Highway Patrol handles crash investigations on state highways in unincorporated Escambia County, including Highway 97, which runs through rural north Escambia County communities including Walnut Hill.
