Molasses Spill Closes Freeway Near Castaic
Molasses, 14 1/2 gooey tons of it, spilled onto the Golden State Freeway near Castaic early Wednesday morning, closing two lanes for about two hours, the California Highway Patrol said.
The spill occurred about 3:15 a.m. near the Templin Highway when a truck driven by Franklin Reiby, 35, of Fayetteville, Ark., rear-ended a tanker truck filled with molasses that was driven by Lawrence Trofy, 42, of Santee, said CHP spokesman Harry Ingold.
Ingold said Reiby was traveling in the southbound slow lane about 35 m.p.h. when he struck Trofy’s vehicle, which was going about 10 m.p.h. Reiby’s truck veered across the freeway after the crash and jackknifed. He suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene, Ingold said.
The molasses was soaked up by 3,000 pounds of sand provided by the state Department of Transportation, Ingold said, and the mess was cleaned up by 6 a.m.
Although the two lanes were closed during the cleanup, Ingold said, there was no significant traffic delay.
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