Fuel Spill Apparently Contained Near Creek

Fire officials expressed confidence that they contained Saturday’s spill of several hundred gallons of fuel by an Irvine company before it could reach a creek leading to Newport’s Back Bay.

Emergency crews erected dikes a half-mile downhill from the spill, which officials said occurred between 8:30 and 10:30 a.m. at a Parker Hannifin Corp. facility at Jamboree Road and Michelson Drive.

Between 300 and 500 gallons of diesel and jet fuel were released into a culvert after the malfunction of a machine designed to recapture fuel spilled at a test facility, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Paul Hunter.

“This is a fairly significant spill,” he said. “At this point, it’s not affecting humans or health, and we want to keep it that way.”

The culvert drains into San Diego Creek and eventually into the Back Bay.

Firefighters used large sponge-like absorbers to soak up the fuel to keep it from reaching the creek or the environmentally sensitive bay.

As a precaution, though, state and federal agencies, including the Harbor Patrol and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, were notified of the spill.

“The property owner will ultimately be responsible for the cost of the cleanup,” Hunter said.