More photos by Jeff Philipp

Fort Providence (Jan 17/00) - A Benalto, Alta. trucker, Daniel Archambault, 33, faces a pair of charges after crashing his 61,000 -kilogram fuel truck through the Fort Providence ice bridge at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

The northbound truck, known as a "Super B," was loaded with 48,000 litres of diesel fuel when the driver attempted to take the big rig across the Mackenzie River ice bridge.

The crossing only opened that morning, and was restricted to vehicles weighing up to 4,000 kilograms.

Archambault has been charged with dangerous driving and operating a vehicle exceeding the maximum weight on a seasonal highway.

The two trailer units of the rig were partially submerged in the incident while the cab remained on the ice. The driver was able to escape without injury.

Archambault, who worked for Petro-Haul of Red Deer, Alta., was treated for hypothermia at the Fort Providence nursing station. He had to walk for some distance in -35 C weather.

The Department of Transportation closed the ice road while emergency crews pumped the fuel from the tanks.

As of Thursday, crews were attempting to remove the truck from the ice.There were fears the diesel could spill into the Mackenzie River.

"So far we've removed all the fuel from the two tanks without incident," said Dale Thomsom, manager of safety and public affairs for the department.

"(The fuel) was kept completely contained with little to no spillage."

The ice bridge will be closed for at least the next 48 hours.

The truck must be removed and then the crossing repaired.

"Right now the truck is frozen into the river," said Albert Lafferty the administrator for the hamlet of Fort Providence.

Traffic continues to cross the river, as the ferry is still running 24-hours a day.