Replies

Yet another tanker accident.

April 29, 2004

Tanker tips, blocks traffic but doesn't spill
BY JEFFREY K. FINLEY
MANAGING EDITOR

A section of Algonquin Road closed for nearly seven hours Friday after a tanker truck tipped while leaving a Route 53 exit ramp, but firefighters were pleased the truck did not spill its 3,600 gallons of sodium hydroxide solution.

"The tank was crumpled, but, fortunately, it was still holding," said Battalion Chief Steve Klein of the Rolling Meadows Fire Department. "They were able to transfer the fluid into another tanker and then right the truck."

Sodium hydroxide -- an ingredient in many industrial solvents and cleaners -- can burn skin and cause respiratory problems, according to a Web site run by the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.

Klein said the 43-year-old truck driver escaped severe injury but received treatment for "some cuts and abrasions" at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.

Local and state police closed Algonquin Road between Meacham Road and Wilke Road for about six hours and 45 minutes after the truck tipped at 12:11 p.m.

Rolling Meadows police Sgt. Tom Calcagno said police blocked vehicles from leaving state Route 53 to Algonquin Road during that period, but Route 53 remained open.

Illinois State Police Lt. Lincoln Hampton said Tuesday that his department is assisting with the investigation of the accident at the request of Rolling Meadows police.

Although the sodium hydroxide did not leak from the truck's tank, the truck leaked diesel fuel and oil onto Algonquin Road, Klein said.

The Rolling Meadows and Schaumburg fire departments primarily handled the cleanup, Klein said. Elk Grove Village, Elk Grove Township and Hoffman Estates firefighters assisted Rolling Meadows and provided coverage for other calls.

Copyright© 2004, Digital Chicago Inc.