Fish killed as truck hits airport wall

TAMPA - A truck crashed into a wall at Tampa International Airport last night, smashing a 1,500-gallon aquarium.

It was around 9:20 p.m., officers say, when Yamile Campuzano-Martine lost control of her pickup truck and slammed into the glass aquarium on the blue side of the arrival and pick-up area of the terminal.

Witnesses told police that Campuzano-Martine had a child on her lap when she lost control of the truck. Her 6-year-old passenger suffered a bump on the head but his mother declined to send him to the hospital.

The damage to the aquarium caused the water to drain out onto the sidewalk, roadway, and the interior carpet. The fish were recovered and placed into a bucket until experts from the Florida Aquarium arrived on scene.

Aquarium biologists were able to collect the majority of the fish, which included 30 to 40 Indo-Pacific animals such as angelfish, clown fish, and blue tang fish. They estimated a 90-percent loss of the fish.

The airport spent $200,000 building the marine exhibit, which included the 12-foot-long tank, as part of their public art program.

Campuzano-Martine, 36, was issued several citations, including one for careless driving.