Crash site stable after truck hauling hydrogen peroxide rolls over near Parksville, B.C.
First responders set up a detour on Highway 19A near Parksville, B.C. on Thursday afternoon after a trailer truck transporting a load of hydrogen peroxide rolled over onto its side.
Parksville Fire Chief Marc Norris says firefighters were called to the crash near the intersection of Highway 19A and Franklin's Gull Road just after 4 p.m.
"When we arrived on scene, we found a tractor unit carrying 70 per cent hydrogen peroxide on its side with a small ground fire around it, and with some product seemingly leaking from the vehicle," he said Friday.
"What we had was a small fire from the peroxide hitting the ground and a reaction," said Norris.
The truck is pictured on Friday, Nov. 25, 2022. (CTV News)
Firefighters quickly shut down the highway in both directions as they doused the flames.
A detour around the highway was still in effect as of Friday.
"At this point, we're just monitoring the situation as the hazmat technicians prepare to offload the truck," said Norris.
There were no injuries in the crash, firefighters say, and the driver of the truck was able to exit the vehicle on his own.
Hydrogen peroxide is an oxidizer that's used for a variety of purposes, including bleaching and disinfecting items.
This load was bound for an island pulp mill, according to Norris.
"In Parksville we had, for many years, a trans-loading facility where we loaded hydrogen peroxide," said the fire chief.
"It was offloaded from railcars onto trucks [going to places] like pulp mills," he said.
"During that time, we had a lot of training, but we had zero incidents. This is the first incident that I've attended involving this kind of hydrogen peroxide," said Norris.
The truck is pictured on Friday, Nov. 25, 2022. (CTV News)
The fire chief says he's unsure how long the detour will be in effect. Crews were at the scene Friday afternoon waiting for a new trailer to arrive to load the product and ship it to its intended destination.
Once all of the chemical has been loaded and delivered, the overturned vehicle will be removed from the site. Then, an environmental assessment will take place "to make sure there's no permanent damage to the environment."
If there is, remediation will be needed.
Norris says that while some hydrogen peroxide leaked from the truck, much of it was contained in auxiliary piping, which did not break.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Doctors combine a pig kidney transplant and a heart device in a bid to extend woman's life
Doctors have transplanted a pig kidney into a New Jersey woman who was near death, part of a dramatic pair of surgeries that also stabilized her failing heart.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.