Diesel Spill Leaks Into San Juan Creek

Emergency teams worked for several hours Monday to contain a small diesel oil spill in San Juan Creek, but an estimated 50 gallons flowed into the ocean.

“It was flowing very heavily when we first got here and was readily detectable, but most of it had already flowed into the ocean,” said Orange County Fire Department Capt. Scott Nelson.

Coast Guard spokesman John Taylor said the accidental leak had been traced to a tractor-trailer owned by Kings County Truck Lines, which had ruptured a fuel tank on a loading dock at the Price Club in nearby Capistrano Beach at 7 a.m. The site is near the San Juan Creek spillway.

Sometime later, rangers at Doheny State Beach reported an oil slick entering the ocean from the creek.

Members of the Fire Department’s hazardous materials team used small booms and absorbent materials to remove the purple and green residue. But a department spokesperson said most of the 50 gallons had flowed to the ocean before emergency crews arrived about 9 a.m.

A private hazardous materials company hired by the Price Club completed the cleanup by late Monday afternoon, Taylor said.

Bruce Moore, a spokesman for the Environmental Management Agency, said the responsible party may face fines by the state Department of Fish and Game and the Coast Guard.