Fire crews, police and the City of Burnaby were on site at Griffiths and Southpoint drives Wednesday, after a truck carrying hydraulic fluid lost part of its load.
The truck, from Cheetah Transport, was carrying several buckets of the fluid, and according to the driver, who did not want to be named, the cargo was not secured properly with plastic wrap.
Approximately 15 barrels spilled into the street, and oil seeped into the storm drain, which leads to Byrne Creek. Cleanup crews used absorbent pads and granular material, as well as a vacuum truck to recover some of the oil. The oil was from North Vancouver's Newalta, which recycles lubricating oil, and the delivery was destined for a farm.
Streamkeeper Paul Cipywnyk was on site after receiving several emails about the spill, and he was pleased with the response.
"I was really impressed with the response, both from the community and the city," he said. "As I hope folks know, all storm drains on the street lead directly to our local creeks in the Lower Mainland here. ... It's really good to see the response from the city and the citizens, who reported it in very quickly."
