Haz-Mat team cleans Umpqua spill
By KPIC Web StaffWorkers from the First Strike Haz-Mat team have spent the last few days cleaning up a fuel spill in the North Umpqua River, trying to prevent it from reaching salmon spawning grounds just a few yards away. MultimediaRelated ContentA semi truck crashed into the river April 10 and spilled about 140 gallons of diesel into the river and on the rocks. Workers from First Strike, who double as wildland firefighters in the summer, had the tedious job of scraping moss off the rocks and bagging it up to be hauled away. They also had to clean off the rocks to prevent the fuel from being washed into the river. Bob Krueger of First Strike says they had to do a lot of hand work to finish the cleanup. "The engine oil is being hand-sprayed, the moss is being taken off, and we're using a Simple Green and actually washing the rocks to get that engine oil off that's all down the edges, and pulling the debris up and then we'll be putting some silt fence and erosion control because we've got salmon beds right over here real close," said Krueger. Jacob Kercher, a hazardous materials specialist for Oregon Department of Transportation, said the agency had concerns about water systems downstream, as well as the fish issues. "With it coming into the North Umpqua, you have Glide water, I mean this water supplies drinking water for a lot of people, so anytime any kind of petroleum products enter the river or anywhere near this river it can turn into quite the big job," Kercher said. Several booms and pads were put in the river to soak up the fuel, and make sure no more escaped downstream. Krueger said the equipment will stay in the water for several days before crews will pull them out, and the cost will be up around $10,000 before its all said and done. But he adds that it could have been a lot worse. |
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