United States (Texas) - A tanker truck hauling 7,500 gallons of diesel fuel rammed into a highway bridge in Mesquite this morning, bursting into flames and shutting down traffic in both directions on Interstate 30. The accident occurred some time around 5 a.m. The westbound lanes of the interstate reopened just before 7:30, but the eastbound lanes were expected to remain shut for hours.

According to authorities, the tanker was traveling east on I-30 near Big Town Boulevard when it hit a bridge and caught fire.

A Mesquite fire official said the driver was taken to Parkland hospital with burn injuries of unknown severity. The driver was conscious at the scene of the wreck, the fire official said.

There were no immediate reports of other injuries.

"it was just a huge ball of fire -- black smoke," a witness to the crash told Fox 4 News.

Hours after the accident, charred hunks of the tanker truck were visible, wedged under the Big Town Boulevard overpass at I-30.

According to TrafficPulse, a private traffic monitoring company, cars began backing up around 5 a.m. By 7:15 a.m., westbound traffic was backed up to the LBJ Freeway.

The fire was extinguished about an hour after the accident occurred. Crews that specialize in handling hazardous materials were sent to the scene.

Written by Dallas Morning News