Driver Killed In Sheetz Gas Tanker Explosion Identified

FREDERICK, MD — Authorities have identified the person killed when a Sheetz gas tanker truck he was driving struck a tree and caught fire on a Frederick highway last weekend.

Ronald Leroy Heiston Jr., 58, of Smithsburg, was hauling about 8,650 gallons of gasoline from Manassas, Virginia, to Taneytown on March 4 when the tanker truck left the right side of the road, struck a tree and caught fire, according to Maryland State Police.

Heiston was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

• RELATED: Sheetz Gas Tanker Explosion In Frederick Kills Driver, 6 Homes Damaged

Authorities confirmed the tanker truck was traveling on northbound Route 15 about a half-mile north of Rosemont Avenue when the crash happened. Police responded to the scene around 12:45 p.m.

Pete Piringer, a spokesman for Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service, which provided aid to local firefighters, told The Washington Post the tanker was a Sheetz fuel truck.

Investigators said six homes and five vehicles sustained damage from the fire that originated from the tanker truck crash, according to state police.

No other injuries or fatalities were reported, authorities said. Route 15 was temporarily closed in both directions following the crash.