Thursday, February 26, 2015

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS TEAM CLEANS UP TWO SEPARATE DIESEL OIL SPILLS IN BRISTOL, VIRGINIA








FEBRUARY 25, 2015

BRISTOL, VIRGINIA

Hazardous materials workers spent Wednesday afternoon cleaning up two separate diesel fuel spills in Bristol.

Emergency responders were first called to Big Valley Seeding, a company in the 6000 block of Gate City Highway, outside the city limits.

Jack Tolbert, with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, said a tanker trailer had been unhooked.  It appears the landing gear broke, he said, and punctured the front compartment of the trailer, spilling diesel fuel onto the ground.

Washington County Fire and Rescue, Goodson-Kinderhook Fire Department and the hazardous materials team from the Bristol Virginia Fire Department responded. They blocked the leak, which Tolbert said spilled about 100 gallons of fuel, and cleaned up the diesel. The crew used booms and absorbent pads.

A creek that flows under a nearby building was likely not affected by the spill, Tolbert said. Although not all of the fuel spilled from the tanker, Tolbert said they had to off-load it as a safety precaution. The fuel was transferred to another tanker.

As crews responded to the Gate City Highway scene, another spill was reported in the northbound lanes of Interstate 81 near Exit 1. A tractor-trailer driver said he heard a noise, stopped his truck and observed fuel spewing onto the ground.

The hazardous materials team responded and set up booms and pads to clean up the mess. The crew said less than 100 gallons of fuel spilled.

In both incidents, Tolbert said snow and ice helped because the diesel was less likely to seep into the ground.

SOURCE: WWW.TRICITIES.COM