Big fuel spill sparks off airport alert

Press, 21 December 1981, Page 1

Big fuel spill sparks off airport alert

Emergency services were called to Christchurch Airport last evening after a tanker’s trailer, containing aviation fuel, had fallen on its side, spilling about 9000 litres of fuel. \ The Fire Service was called to the scene about 5 p.m. when fuel started to pour from the trailer of the Mobil tanker as it lay in Wairakei Road near two oilcompany depots and the cargo areas of Air New Zealand and the United States Navy Antarctic Support Force. Part of Wairakei Road was immediately cordoned by the Ministry of Transport and only a few officials, including a dangerous-goods inspector, were allowed into the area. The Antarctic Support Force area was cleared when the wind changed to the north-west, increasing the chance of a spark coming from that area. ' A Fire Service spokesman

said that he did not know how the trailer had fallen on its side. The trailer had lost half of its 18,000-litre load before four fire engines arrived. Passing cars were quickly flagged on as the firemen laid hoses on the road to try to stem the flow of spilt fuel. Several truck loads of sand were delivered to help soak up the spillage. Traffic officers tightened their cordon as foam was sprayed over the spillage to lessen any chance of the fuel’s igniting. An oil-recovery unit later removed the remaining fuel from the trailer and replaced it with nitrogen gas. By 9.15 p.m. a crane had lifted the trailer back into an upright position and the fourhour mopping-up effort was nearly at an end. The Fire Service appliance remained at the scene because nearby channels and gutters still had fuel in them.