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News Release 235
ENVIRONMENTAL CLEANUP OF FATAL TANKER TRUCK ACCIDENT IN NEW MADRID COUNTY BEGINS THIS MORNING
Department of Natural Resources to Oversee Diesel, Oil Leak Cleanup
Volume 36-235 |
Contact: Larry Archer |
(For immediate release) |
573-751-3807 |
JEFFERSON CITY, MO, APRIL 30, 2008 -- Cleanup is expected to be completed today in a New Madrid County tractor-trailer accident that resulted in the death of the driver and the release of a small amount of diesel fuel and motor oil, according to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
The department's Environmental Emergency Response section was contacted Tuesday afternoon by the Portagville Fire Department concerning a roll-over accident on Interstate Highway 55 at mile marker 34.
Although the tanker truck was carrying 6,000 gallons of anhydrous ammonia, the only reported chemical release was of diesel fuel and motor oil.
Enough of the contents of the tanker were pumped into another truck to allow the wrecked truck to be up righted and removed from the roadside ditch Tuesday evening. Cleanup of the area affected by the fuel and oil release is expected to begin today following an investigation by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The highway patrol identified the driver of the truck as Kevin M. Parr, 48, of Bertrand.
The Department of Natural Resources' on-scene coordinator from its Southeast Regional Office, Poplar Bluff, will oversee the cleanup, which will be performed by contractors hired by the truck's owner, Breeden Trucking, Sikeston.
From July 1, 2006, through June 30, 2007, vehicle accidents accounted for 15 percent of the environmental emergency incidents reported to the department, and petroleum products accounted for 43 percent of materials released during environmental emergencies.
The department's Environmental Emergency Response section is called to the scene of more than 300 emergencies each year, including fires, traffic accidents, leaking storage tanks and other incidents that could have a negative environmental impact. The department's 24-hour spill line receives more than 1,600 incident reports annually.
To report an environmental emergency, including fuel spills, please contact the spill line at
(573) 634-2436. For more information, contact the Department of Natural Resources at 800-361-4827 or (573) 751-3443, or visit the department's Web page at www.dnr.mo.gov.
For more information on this accident, visit the Missouri State Highway Patrol Web site at www.mshp.dps.mo.gov.
For news releases on the Web, visit www.dnr.mo.gov/newsrel. For a complete listing of the department's upcoming meetings, hearings and events, visit the department's online calendar at www.dnr.mo.gov/calendar/search.do.
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