Cleanup underway at Sugar House Park after semi crashes, spills fuel in Parleys Canyon
Authored by Bridger Beal-Cvetko
Source: KSL
Nearly 200 gallons of diesel fuel was spilled into Parleys Creek after a semi truck crashed on Interstate-80. Pet owners are advised to keep animals out of the creek as cleanup happens.
Cleanup is underway at Sugar House Park and Tanner Park after a semitruck crashed in Parleys Canyon early Thursday, carrying up to 180 gallons of diesel fuel in its two saddle tanks, health officials say.
Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Cam Roden said a semitruck lost control while traveling west on I-80 about 4 a.m. The truck jackknifed and struck the left barrier, he said.
Environmental cleanup crews were called to pump the rest of the fuel from the tank, but fire officials later said units were sent to Tanner Park and Sugar House Park — both downstream on Parleys Creek — to "mitigate the incident." After the crash, the fuel entered a storm drain in Parleys Canyon before crews were able to contain it.
Pet owners are advised to keep animals out of the creek for the "foreseeable future," but officials say there is no impact on drinking water because it happened downstream of the Parleys Canyon water treatment plant. The Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities tested the drinking water in the area, confirming that quality has not been impacted.
"Two hundred gallons is a significant amount of fuel that we're dealing with, but it's something that we can mitigate with our absorbent pads — we don't have to do anything further than that," said Salt Lake Fire Capt. Brandt Handcuff.
Crews have installed absorbent booms around the pond at Sugar House Park, where a sheen of fuel can be seen on the water, and the scent of gasoline is evident. The smell of gas is noticeable at Hidden Hollow Park and near 900 East.
Handcuff said officials with the Department of Natural Resources have been notified so they can monitor any animals that may have been impacted by the spill. Signage has been placed around Tanner dog park and Sugar House Park, urging visitors to avoid the waterways "until further notice."
