Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Warden Matt Mead, from left, talks to Hurley Police Chief Chris Colassaco, Iron County Emergency Government Director Stacy Ofstad and Ironwood Public Safety Officer Brandon Snyder near the Monteal River in Hurley Monday. A spill was reported.
By TOM LAVENTURE
Hurley - A pedestrian's quick action helped to reduce the amount of what is believed to be discarded motor oil that made its way through the stormwater system into the Montreal River on Monday.
Jeff Paddock, Northern Region Spills coordinator for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said the caller complained there was a "sheen present on the river" near the Hurley bridge. The city of Hurley and Iron County Emergency Management placed absorbent booms in response to the apparent petroleum substance flowing from a storm sewer pipe and are monitoring the spill with assistance from the DNR.
"A sheen was present where the storm water entered the river, but at this time there appears to be no additional petroleum impacts to the river and the amount of petroleum product exiting the storm sewer appears to have ceased," Paddock said. "A source of the petroleum spill has not yet been identified."
Stacy Ofstad, director of Iron County Emergency Management, said the caller was anonymous. The booms, which are floating barriers that contain oil on water surfaces, were in place overnight into Tuesday and will be kept in the water until Wednesday.
Ofstad said he believes the liquid is most likely hydraulic oil. The spill could have been up to 50 gallons and most has now made its way through the pipe and is now residual oil, he said.
"I am guessing that somebody poured oil down the storm sewer and that is pretty much the consensus," Ofstad said.
The 30 inch stormwater pipe at the river leads up behind the buildings on Silver Street and then along First Avenue and Copper Street, he said. Any surface water flowing south of Fifth Avenue and Copper Street will be caught in that storm drain and eventually through that pipe, he said.
Hurley Chief of Police Chris Colassaco, said his department first responded to the call and identified the area of the oily substance that was discovered leaking from the stormwater pipe. They remained at the scene until the other agencies arrived.
"Our officers responded and did what we could until the Wisconsin DNR arrived on scene," Colassaco said. "The DNR is going to be handling it from here on out."
Ironwood Public Safety Department also responded to the scene.
