A truck driver is recovering in hospital from burns after his truck stumbled down an embankment in St. Eustache on Monday evening, spilling thousands of litres of diesel fuel into the Chene River.

The truck was transporting a generator on Industrial Blvd. at the corner of St. Eustache St. when the driver lost control, went over a guardrail and tumbled into the riverbed below, catching fire.

As the truck turned on its side, and the driver, a man who is about 70 years old, was burned before he could be pulled from the vehicle. His wounds are not life-threatening but he has been taken to Hotel Dieu hospital in Montreal for treatment of second- and third-degree burns.

Jean Duhamel drove past the crash soon after it happened.

“I saw a guy in the middle of the street that frantically was saying, "Go on, go on!" So I looked to my left and there was some smoke coming up from the area where the accident took place,” he said.

When he saw the thick plumes of black smoke coming from the truck he worried about an explosion.

"When I saw the smoke and this gentleman frantically saying get out of the way, I can assure you I pushed on the pedal and made sure I was getting far away from that area," said Duhamel.

It was a frantic scene for firefighters.

“The driver was still trapped in the cab, and a couple of citizens were trying to put out the fire, but because it was diesel that was burning, they weren't able to,” explained Charles de Rouville of the St. Eustache fire department.

Firefighters were able to bring the flames under control, but it took another 45 minutes to free the driver, and place him in an ambulance. The driver was transported from St. Eustache Hospital to Hotel Dieu Hospital to be treated for his severe burns.

Meantime, a large generator fell off the back of the truck and leaked an estimated 4,000 L of fuel into the river.

“There was fuel leaking from the generator, or the motor of the generator or the truck itself,” said de Rouville.

Overnight crews installed floating booms to contain the spilled fuel and prepared to pull the truck upright, finally hauling the truck out of the ravine early Tuesday morning.

In total, about 23,000 L of contaminated water was pumped out of the river, said Alain Rochon of Urgence-Environnement.

Urgence-Environnement said the Chene River is not a source of drinking water, and so the local population should not worry about the contamination of the river.