Acid Spill In Pennsylvania: 5,000 Evacuated After Hazardous Spill

WIND GAP, Pa. — A tractor-trailer carrying a dangerous acid overturned on a highway Saturday, prompting authorities to order thousands of residents to leave the area for almost nine hours.

The tanker, carrying 33,000 pounds of corrosive hydrofluoric acid, a component for household detergents, flipped on a sloping curve in the road at about 3 a.m. on the edge of Wind Gap, about 60 miles north of Philadelphia, and began leaking slowly.

Hydrofluoric acid in low doses can irritate the eyes, nose and respiratory tract, and in higher doses it can cause severe burns, chronic lung disease or even death, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.

At 7 a.m., officials ordered an evacuation of 944 households. They said about 5,000 people were in the affected area.

Northampton County spokesman John Conklin said the truck driver was treated at a hospital and was released. One of about 200 people at an evacuation center at a local high school was taken to a hospital for a condition unrelated to the hazardous-materials incident.

Emergency crews reported liquid dripping from the tanker's valves or piping, forcing them to don full-protection suits to stop the drip. The tanker truck was righted at about 3 p.m., and the evacuation order was lifted soon after, although the road, Route 33, remained closed in both directions.

Conklin said animals in the affected area, including horses from several farms, were relocated.

Comments

[yappnmutt]

purple haze all in my brain.....

[NYCartist]

Hazardous materials should not be allowed via truck or rail through populated, or near populated areas.

[Sweeper23]

Except that it's not that simple. Materials-­-hazardous or not--must be transported to where they are used, e.g., factories or, say, stores that sell swimming pool shocker (a load of more than 1,000 pounds of pool shocker is a haz-mat load). Often, the only way to get to those places--either by rail or over roads--will inevitably entail moving freight through or near populated areas. As far as rail is concerned, there aren't sidings at every store or factory; that leaves trucking as the sole alternative. Who knows, maybe the HF was to be used in an industrial process that would benefit you personally in some way. "If you've got it, a trucker brought it."

[bentheimmigrant]

A clorox plant was labeled as one of the most hazardous in the us last year. It's right in LA, and has direct rail link. You would rather make everyone there unemployed? Regulation is there to ensure that everything in industry is run at a reasonably safe level. (Reasonable in legal terms, not relative)

The reason most populated places are so populated is the presence of jobs. If you moved all the plants away from populated areas, they would create new populated areas.

(Note: I'm not saying LA is big because of a Clorox plant, just that the plant is near people)

[isis]

What about gasoline? That is hazardous and comes with very few safety features at the pump. Just this week there were at least two gas pump explosions--one person killed and 8 injured.

[Sweeper23]

So far, all we know is that a truck turned over. Maybe the driver had to swerve to avoid a car or an SUV. Maybe the driver suffered a medical emergency, say a stroke or a heart attack. Why assume that the trucker was speeding or otherwise driving irresponsibly?
After driving 1.2 million miles--all accident-free--in 18-wheelers, I can say that most of the problems I had on the road originated with car drivers. A study by the American Automobile Association found that 86% of car-truck accidents start with the car driver. A study by the University of Michigan reached a similar conclusion. Reducate 4-wheelers.

[spartanmom]

Some of the most impressive driving I have ever seen has been by semi drivers.

One unknown driver saved my life through his most impressive skills. A lesser driver would have jack-knifed and swept me right off the road.

yeah, there are some jerks but most are serious professionals

[yappnmutt]

4 wheelers have a limited understanding of physics just like bicycle riders and motorcyclists. it causes them to do stupid things. as an auto driver i can always depend upon what a truck driver will do. i never depend upon what a motorcyclist or a bicycle rider or a fellow car driver will do.

[DFL]

I hate driving in PA. and WV. those states are like a roller coaster ride, hill after hill and curve after curve, also these days when people drive why does every trip have to be a race?

[howcome]

and by Monday morning some legislator will bring up a bill to legislate for our safety

[greataunty2]

that darn Obama, somehow he is responsible for this!!!

[AnalyzeIT]

*not Obama, could be Cheney.

There is a reason for everything and yes it could be an accident. However, there are NO such things as accidents.

Think!! Look at everyone and everything.

We have fight if we want to come out of this alive.

[landstar]

that darn Bush, somehow he is responsible for this!!! AND Barry's Special Olympics snide remark...

[Dredd]

This case of "toxic acids" is a lot like the "toxic assets" ... both are avoidable disasters.

But only one is propaganda: http://blogdredd.blogspot.com/2009/03/propaganda-is-toxic-asset.html

[SheikPA]

O my goodness. I travel on this highway everyday. Those truckers drive so recklessly. Tailgating the heck out of you and zinging in and out between traffic on a curvy highway. This is the second major incident to happen of a overturn truck spill. There are few cops along this highway, which entice others to speed then eventually may cause harm to others. This disater was bound to happen, it was just a matter of when

[SpaghettyIrish]

You should give trucks at least 2-4 seconds of following distance before you move back into their lane. They're trained driving pros, you're not. Many auto-drivers don't realize how often they risk their lives driving stupidly around a truck.

[jerrypl]

the highways in PA are the worst in the US. The PA turnpike was the very first highway in the nation. The road is narrow and windy. Trucks drive way too fast, and continuous pass each other causing dangerous situations. They forget they are endangering thousands with one tip-over. I love PA and live in the state. It is so beautiful but the highways and roads are scary sometimes.

http://eye-on-washington.blogspot.com

[BannedInBoston]

Based on my experience commuting along an Interstate with tons (literally) of 18-wheelers, I would tend to blame the drivers rather the highway. Truckers DO (by and large) drive way too fast and make too many d a n g e rous moves. And they TAILGATE cars they don't think are going fast enough. I've seen these huge semis get within what seems like a feet feet of the rear bumper of some poor little compact. And if, for some reason, they can't pass, they just ride on someone's @ss (and occasionally mine) like that for miles....

[TexasMom]

I was driving on a road out of Pittsburgh (?) towards the road to Punxsatawn­y....at night with curves, construction, two lane highway, driveways and a death grip on the wheel and then came across a sign that said something like "High DWI Area, Drive with Caution". I almost cried!

It was the worst experience driving in my life and I've driven lots of closed in the winter 1 lane logging trails in the mountains of US and Canada. It was enough to convince me to stay west of the Mississippi.

[SpaghettyIrish]

Try taking I-77 and I-79 through WV. 240 miles of grades and turns.

[WorldGoneWild]

Agreed. The turnpike in Western PA is especially beautiful with the rolling hills and farms, but if you are driving, it's dangerous to look at the scenery.

[All in All]

Maybe this incident will give some People a Job to do (Repave the road).

[BannedInBoston]

Re-educate truckers.

[bwco]

I have been on that road many times. 33 is a road that goes between the Allentown area and the Poconos. There is very little enforcement and the part of the road in Wind Gap is a winding mountanous stretch of the road between 2 long straight stretches of the highway. In other words, I am not suprised this happened.

[BannedInBoston]

There must be a reason why it's called Wind Gap....

[JimBozo]

Hydrofluoric acid is nasty stuff. It's the only acid which can etch glass.

[BannedInBoston]

To say nothing of human flesh.

[research]

It "sneaks" up on you. It can painlessly penetrate skin, then dissolve bone and worse.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrofluoric_acid

[jeanruss]

I believe this is the same stuff they use to fluoridate our water systems.

[holyhandgrenaid]

No, its not. Water flouridation is done with Sodium Flouride (NaF), while hydrofouric acid is Hydrogen Flouride (HF). HF would dissolve teeth in a flash