LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department issued a report on a hazmat spill that necessitated the closure of a portion of 11th Street late Thursday morning.
The incident occurred shortly before noon, as Lake County News has reported.
Lt. Jason Ferguson said that at approximately 11:46 a.m. Lakeport Police officers and Lakeport Fire Department personnel responded to the area of 11th and Pool streets on a report of a trailer, carrying chemicals, leaking and spilling onto the street.
Officers arrived and immediately closed 11th Street from North Street to Pool Street to divert traffic as fire personnel attended to the hazmat spill, Ferguson said.
He said officers contacted 60-year-old James Govern of Lower Lake and learned that he was driving his Ford Ranger westbound on 11th Street when the trailer – which was carrying chlorine and muriatic acid containers – began to fishtail due to the trailer becoming disconnected from the truck.
The trailer struck a telephone pole and flipped onto its side, spilling approximately one half gallon each of chlorine and muriatic acid onto 11th Street, Ferguson reported.
Prior to emergency responders arriving on scene, Govern moved the trailer off of 11th Street and onto Pool Street, Ferguson said.
Due to safety concerns, Ferguson said residents and employees of neighboring businesses in the area where alerted and advised to stay indoors while the investigation continued.
Lakeport Fire, Lake County Environmental Health and Lakeport Public Works remained on scene
cleaning up the spill for nearly two hours, Ferguson said.
He said the cleanup was safely completed at 1:35 p.m. and 11th Street was reopened.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, Ferguson said.