by Bea Peterson
On Wednesday, February 13, an enormous black cloud filled the sky along Route 7, about one mile west the Routes 7 and 22 intersection. A fuel truck had crashed through guardrails, destroyed a utility pole and plunged down an embankment, bursting into flames. The driver, Shawn Disley of Agawam, MA, was first taken to Albany Medical Center and then airlifted to the Westchester County Medical Center Burn Unit.
[private]Fuel Into Brook
According to Rick Georgeson, Public Information Officer for the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Region 4, the tanker truck, belonging to J.P. Noonan Transportation of West Springfield, MA, was hauling a mixed load of 8,500 gallons of gasoline and 1,000 gallons of diesel when it crashed and caught fire. “We do not know precisely how much fuel entered the environment, but we believe most of the fuel was consumed in the fire,” he reported. It is unknown how much fuel reached the Shingle Hollow Brook before DEC and remediation equipment reached the scene.
“It is also uncertain how long the cleanup will take due to the fact that the stream is iced over in most areas. Some pockets of fuel are trapped in and under the ice and are being released as the ice thaws. The spill cleanup contractor, Clean Harbors of Glenmont, NY, has placed absorbent booms and other absorbent materials in a number of sections of the stream and vacuumed up about 100 gallons of petroleum in the aftermath of the fire. Clean Harbors has cleared ice in several sections to allow space for the booms.
“The areas that we are noticing impacts in the stream have decreased considerably since the spill first occurred,” Georgeson said, “undoubtedly, some of the fuel reached the Hoosic River.”
The overwhelming odor of fuel that permeated the air for miles all day Friday and into the weekend had dissipated quite a bit by Tuesday afternoon.
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