Morning rush hour traffic was slowed to a crawl on the South Shore Tuesday following an early-morning crash which saw a tanker truck plunge into the St. Lawrence River from Highway 132 at about 5:30 a.m.

The truck driver escaped the crash and was transported to hospital but nobody was injured in the incident which took place on the riverside highway at kilometre 77 between the St. Lambert locks and the Champlain Bridge.

The accident took place on the stretch of road between the Victoria and Champlain bridges and also involved a recreational vehicle which was badly damaged in the collision. A small compact car was also damaged.

The driver lost control of his truck when attempting to pass the two other vehicles parked on the roadside while the motorists completed paperwork for a minor fender-bender.

The 26-wheel truck hit the vehicles before skidding into the river with 40 metric tonnes of dry cement powder. About 400 litres of diesel fuel flowed into the river.

The driver rapidly exited the truck and climbed atop the cab following the accident, calling out for help for himself and his dog, according to one eyewitness report, which also said that the truck's entry in the water was preceded by a tire explosion.

Rescuers were able to lift the driver's dog out of the wreckage and to safety.

"There were no criminal elements," said SQ spokesperson Sgt. Ingrid Asselin, who added that the driver was not impaired.

Two of three westbound lanes on Highway 132 were closed following the accident Tuesday morning, hampering the flow of traffic to the Champlain Bridge.

Expert attention required for cleanup

Dozens were involved in the cleanup, which will be paid either by the company or its insurers. Mario Morin is operator of tanker truck, Entreprises DuPont owns the cement.

"It won't be the taxpayer, it will be the owner of the vehicle, his insurance that are supposed to be covered," said Environment Quebec spokesperson Christian Blanchette.

As late as 12 hours after it plunged into the river, the truck was still on its side, getting expert attention.

“One thing is for sure, one of the tanks has been ruptured but the cement is still in the tank,” said Blanchette.

Workers vacuumed the cement and used booms to keep some of the fuel from floating away, worried that if it became wet, the problem would have been worse.

“That's always a question but it's 40 tons of cement, it's no other types of contaminants,” said Blanchette. "They'll probably dig it, drag it cut all the vegetation that is contaminated."

Towing company Remorquage Longueuil has its work cut out for it.

“We need to detach the trailer and the tractor because the tractor is scrap but the trailer is good,” said Sebastien Roy, from Remorquage Longueuil.

truck in water st .ambert

concrete removal