On April 20, a semitruck carrying wood chips crashed into a wetland along the McKenzie River near Finn Rock.
Eugene Water & Electric Board environmental specialist David Donahue, who coordinates the EWEB’s Emergency Response System, has been in charge of the inspection, containment and cleanup of the crash site.
Donahue reported that most of the fuel was contained in the wetland and did not reach the McKenzie River.
“I walked the entire perimeter of the crash site, and I couldn’t find any evidence that diesel/oil sheens reached the McKenzie River directly through surface flow,” Donahue wrote in an email.
According to EWEB Communication spokesperson Aaron Orlowski, Donahue reported that it appeared as though the wetland and its various side channels did not connect directly with the mainstream of the river and apparently went underground before reconnecting.
The truck carried over 100,000 pounds of wood chips. EWEB’s emergency response trucks are continuing the cleanup and removing the wood chips from the crash site.
Once the majority of the wood chips are removed, EWEB’s cleanup teams and emergency responders will remove the truck, contaminated soil and surrounding debris from the crash, according to EWEB.
