Chemical spills at River Road, St. Francis
Posted: August 21, 2015 - 4:53pm
Robert Stein / Amarillo Globe-News
By ROBERT STEIN
robert.stein@amarillo.com
Hazardous material teams contained a chemical spill after a container of flammable liquid fell off of a trailer on Friday afternoon.
At 3:46 p.m., the Amarillo Fire Department responded to reports of a hazardous chemical spill on St. Francis Avenue, just east of River Road.
Upon arrival, the first crew found a 300 gallon container of liquid had fallen onto the side of the roadway. The liquid was running downhill and had traveled about 100 feet.
Firefighters determined that the liquid was an emulsifier used at oil fields and contained a highly flammable chemical known as toluene. About 150 gallons of the chemical had leaked out.
A hazardous material team was called out and quickly created a dam to stop forward progress of the chemical. The team also created a 150-foot perimeter around the spill, closing two westbound lanes near the intersection of St. Francis Avenue and River Road.
The major concern was keeping any ignition sources away from the chemical, Capt. Larry Davis of the Amarillo Fire Department said.
A forklift was called out, and shortly after 6 p.m., the container was lifted back to its upright position, with half of its contents still inside.
A local environmental cleanup crew then took control.
No injuries were reported from the incident.