Chemical Cleanup Forces Highway Closure

A 35-mile stretch of Interstate 80 was closed for more than seven hours Saturday because of problems with the cleanup of hazardous chemicals from a wrecked truck east of here.

A Nevada Highway Patrol spokeswoman said the highway was closed at 10:40 a.m. after lethal gas escaped from several barrels holding hydrofluoric acid and ammonium fluoride. The westbound lane reopened at 5:30 p.m., and the eastbound lane reopened an hour later.

The spokeswoman said the hazardous materials have been transported from the site, and that one member of the cleanup crew suffered slight burns on the inside of his mouth.

The chemical reaction reportedly produced a small cloud of gas. The highway closure was a safety precaution taken because the two chemicals are lethal if breathed or touched, the spokeswoman said.

It was the same stretch of the interstate that was closed for 21 hours last weekend after a truck drifted off the road. Some of the barrels holding the two chemicals sprang leaks from the jostling they took on the bumpy shoulder.

The problem with the gas leaks occurred Saturday as cleanup crews were preparing to load the barrels on a truck and take them away from the accident scene just off the eastbound lanes of the interstate.

The closed stretch is from Fernley, Nev., to Trinity, Nev. Motorists were rerouted through Fallon by way of U.S. 50 and U.S. 95.

The May Trucking Co. rig was on its way from San Francisco to Salt Lake City when the accident occurred. Its driver was cited for failure to maintain a travel lane.