Toxic Spill Closes 3 Lanes of Freeway

Three lanes of the San Diego Freeway, north of Jamboree Road, were shut down Saturday night while a county hazardous-materials team cleaned up several gallons of a toxic chemical that had been dumped on the roadway, the California Highway Patrol said.

The spill was reported about 8:45 p.m. after half a dozen blue, 1-gallon plastic containers broke open when they fell onto the two right-hand southbound lanes. Traffic was reduced from six to only three lanes during the cleanup, a CHP spokeswoman said.

The containers were filled with a swimming pool cleaner that contained hydrochloric acid, the CHP said.

Irvine police also barricaded the MacArthur Boulevard on-ramp and the Jamboree Road off-ramp, preventing traffic from getting near the spill area.