LOUISIANA - Gasoline Spill Forces Evacuation of Subdivision

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Grassroots Information Coordination Center (GICC) : One Thread

[Fair use for education and research purpose only]

Title: Gasoline Spill Forces Evacuation of Subdivision

The Associated Press

4/3/00 2:33 AM

MONROE, La. (AP) -- Severe storms packing heavy rains slowed efforts to clean up a 10,000-gallon gasoline spill, keeping hundreds of people from returning to their homes today, state police said.

The spill Saturday night forced authorities to evacuate more than 100 homes.

It occurred as gasoline was being transferred from a barge in the Ouachita River, 5 miles south of Monroe, into a storage tank owned by Ruston-based Davison Transport, said State Police Sgt. Howard McKee.

"There are still some pretty strong fumes," McKee said Sunday night.

No injuries were reported. McKee said human error, perhaps a lack of supervision, likely led the tank to overflow.

McKee said all of gasoline leaked into a containment pit. But cleanup was delayed by several storms Sunday, which refilled the containment pit with rain water.

"Every time we get the level pumped down, another thunder storm moves through and brings it back up," McKee said.

As they evacuated the subdivision, authorities also shut down a 9-mile stretch of U.S. Route 165 as a precautionary measure. It remained closed today.

The Red Cross set up a shelter at the Monroe Civic Center Arena, but most people were staying with friends or relatives, officials said.

Authorities were allowing some residents in the affected area to return home briefly if they needed medication, McKee said.

Cleanup teams also brought in a more powerful pump Sunday afternoon from Jackson, Miss., which was expected to speed up their efforts, officials said.

Copyright 2000 Associated Press.

http://www.nolalive.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?n2594_PM_LA--GasolineSpill&&news&newsflash-louisiana

===============================

-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), April 03, 2000

Answers

Louisiana: Gas spill forces evacuation of subdivision

By The Associated Press

MONROE -- Hundreds of people were being kept away from their homes Sunday following a gasoline spill from a storage tank a day earlier, State Police said.

The 10,000-gallon spill Saturday night forced authorities to evacuate more than 100 homes in the Charmingdale subdivision south of Monroe. Many residents said they weren't told why they were being evacuated.

"They just told us to leave," said Bobbie Broadway, a resident of Charmingdale.

The spill occurred as gasoline was being transferred from a barge in the Ouachita River, 5 miles south of Monroe, into a storage tank owned by Ruston-based Davison Transport, said State Police Sgt. Howard McKee.

No injuries were reported. McKee said human error, perhaps a lack of supervision, likely led the tank to overflow. State Police hazardous materials teams and the Ouachita Parish Fire Department used foam to contain the spill on Davison Transport property shortly before 10:30 p.m. Saturday.

McKee said all of the gasoline leaked into a containment pit, but cleanup was delayed by thunder storms early Sunday, which refilled the containment pit with rain water.

"There are still some pretty strong fumes," McKee said Sunday night. "We're encouraging people to make preparations to spend another night away from home."

As they evacuated the subdivision, authorities also shut down a 9- mile stretch of U.S. 165 as a precautionary measure.

Both the subdivision and U.S. 165 were closed through Sunday night.

The Red Cross set up a shelter at the Monroe Civic Center Arena, but most people were staying with friends or relatives, officials said.

Authorities were allowing some residents in the affected area to return home briefly if they needed medication, McKee said.

Cleanup teams also brought in a more powerful pump Sunday afternoon from Jackson, Miss., which was expected to speed up their efforts, officials said.

http://www.theadvocate.com/news/story.asp?StoryID=12081

More from Chemsafety website:

About 10,000 gallons of gasoline spilled during an effort to transfer the liquid from a barge in the Ouachita River into a storage tank, authorities reported. No one was injured but about 100 homes were evacuated in a nearby subdivision. A nine-mil stretch of U.S. 165 was also shut down for the night. The spill was contained with foam by late evening but cleanup was delayed when thunder storms refilled the containment pit with rain water. A powerful pump was brought in the next afternoon to finish the job.

http://chemsafety.gov/circ/post.cfm?incident_id=4774

-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), April 03, 2000.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ