25 Mar 2014

Chemical clean-up almost over

6:28 pm on 25 March 2014

The clean-up of a large chemical spill at an Auckland worksite is nearly complete.

The incident scene.

The incident scene. Photo: RNZ

A forklift driver punctured a container of hydrolic acid at the Waterview Road project just after 5.30 on Tuesday morning.

800 litres of the acid spilled out. Fire crews applied caustic soda to neutralise the acid, creating a steam cloud.

However, the Fire Service said the cloud was no threat to public health. It said residents were no longer being urged to stay inside and its 15 trucks still at the site should be finished in the next couple of hours.

Waterview road project manager John Burden said the workers reacted just as they'd been trained. He said the driver had been interviewed, and the incident was being investigated.

Transport Agency Waterview communications adviser Helen Cook said the spill was well contained as the acid, which was used for cleaning waste water from the roading project, was housed in a purpose-built hazardous substances building.