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UPDATED: Truck accident closes Route 19, north of Bergen

By Howard B. Owens

UPDATED 11:50 a.m.

A diesel fuel delivery truck hit a passenger vehicle on Route 19 just north of Bergen a little after 7 a.m., causing 50 to 70 gallons of diesel fuel to spill and severely injuring the driver of the passenger vehicle.

Route 19 has been closed since the accident and will be closed for well into the afternoon.

The name of the driver of the passenger vehicle is not available at this time and nobody else was in the car with him. He was taken by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital.

Two drivers where entrapped, but the truck driver was suffered only minor injuries, according to Tim Yaeger, the county's emergency management coordinator.

A third car was involved, but was only a minor part of the accident, according to Sgt. James Meier. The car just clipped the truck as it was coming to rest, Meier said.

The Genesee County Sheriff's Office is handling the investigation and the cause of the accident. Names of the victims are expected to be released later.

Yaeger said the truck, after striking the car, turned on its side and rolled into some trees. 

The fuel on the truck needed to be transferred to another truck before it could be up righted.

UPDATE 11:05 a.m.: The road clean up is going to take longer than expected. Special equipment needs to be brought in from Victor. Once on scene, the work is expected to take as long as two hours, so this section of Route 19 could be closed for up to three more hours.

UPDATE 12:21 p.m.: The drivers have been identified: James E. Simons, 36, of Mount Morris, was driving a 2001 Jeep. Aron S. Flatt, 38, of Ontario, was driving the tanker truck. Patrick J. Donahue, 21, of Batavia, was driving a 2008 Ford pickup truck. 

According to the Sheriff's Office, Simons was heading north on Route 19 at 5:30 a.m. when his Jeep crossed the center line and collided with the tanker. The tanker was loaded with approximately 2000 gallons of diesel fuel.  Donahue was not injured and his truck sustained only minor damage. 

Simons and Flatt were both transported to Strong. Flatt was taken by ground ambulance, Simons by Mercy Flight.

The crash is being investigated by deputies James Weis, Frank Bordonaro, Ron Meides and Sgt. James Meier. Assisting at the scene were the Bergen and Churchville fire departments as well as Genesee county Emergency Management and NYTS Department of Environmental Conservation.

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