Sludge Watch ==> MA - mystery truck spills sewage sludge on highway

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Ok fellas, who spilled the sludge?
No one leaves till one of you 'fesses up....
This story raises important points about accountability and liability.
................................................................................................

Public asked to help find truck that spilled sewage
By Jason Tait , Staff Writer
Eagle-Tribune


—

HAVERHILL - City leaders are asking for the public's help in identifying a 
dump truck that spilled about 50 gallons of raw sewage onto Route 125, 
creating a health hazard and fouling the air for the last two days.

The spill happened Monday morning at the corner of Route 125 and Laurel 
Avenue in front of the Dr. Curtis Stathis dentist office, opposite the 
Bradford Fire Station and the driveway to Hunking Middle School.

"It smelled, and it looked disgusting," said Lisa Tassinari, a dental 
assistant who witnessed adults and students walking through the sludge. "It 
looked like dark mud."

Wastewater Department crews were dispatched to the scene about 9 a.m. Monday 
to clean the mess, a spill that may have violated hauling laws, said James 
Michitson, the department chemist.

Bleach and sand were used to clean it, Michitson said, but the smell 
lingers.

"It's pretty ripe," he said.

Bonnie Dufresne, the city's agent to the Board of Health, said it is unusual 
to carry raw sewage in a dump truck. Usually only sand and dirt from around 
a septic area can be transported in an open dump truck. Raw sewage is hauled 
in tanker trucks when companies pump out septic tanks of homes that are not 
tied into the city's sewer system.


"We want to find out how the spill occurred and how to make sure he was not 
transporting it in a manner in which was a public nuisance or health issue," 
she said.

The spill was reported to the state Department of Environmental Protection.

Crossing guard William Greenwood was helping students cross the street when 
the spill happened about 7:30 a.m. Greenwood saw the dump truck traveling 
toward North Andover when the driver decided to stop for cars waiting at the 
Laurel Avenue intersection. The bed of the truck had a cover on it, but when 
the driver hit the brakes, dark liquid squirted out from gaps in the cover.

"It just shot out the sides," Greenwood said.

The driver pulled ahead and stopped on the side of the street but drove off 
when Greenwood approached. Greenwood did not get the license plate.

The smell immediately fouled the area, and some of the sewage splashed onto 
vehicles as they passed by.

"It was terrible," Greenwood said. "The kids were holding their noses."

Hunking students walking home Monday afternoon were told by school officials 
to avoid that intersection and cross at Cumberland Avenue, "obviously for 
the health reasons and tracking it into their houses," said Assistant 
Principal Dorothy Flaherty. "It had a horrible odor to it."




The odor was human feces, said student Nick Pagliarulo, 12, and it lingered 
into yesterday afternoon as he walked home from school.

"It smelled pretty bad," Nick said. "I jumped over it."

Michitson hopes that anyone with information about the truck or the driver 
will contact the city. He wants an investigation to determine if any laws 
were broken, he said.

At the very least, the city will want to be reimbursed for the cleanup 
costs, he said.

PG1 BOX

Witnesses wanted

Anyone with information about the dump truck that spilled raw sewage on 
Route 125 Monday is asked to call the city's Wastewater Department at 
978-374-2382.