Intersection of Middle Belt, Eight Mile reopened after hazmat spill

Middle Belt and Eight Mile reopens after chemical spill cleanup

Phone video from Wayne County Homeland Security and Emergency Services showed the truck leaking ferric chloride onto the road.

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (FOX 2) -
A hazardous mess is now clear, but only after almost 24 hours of cleanup.

It started Monday at about 5 p.m. when officials say a semi-trailer lost part of its cargo, spilling 300 gallons of corrosive liquid, described as a ferric chloride leak.

The backstory:

According to officials, at 5 p.m. on Monday, firefighters were called to a tractor trailer leaking ferric chloride out of the trailer and onto the road.

Dekyra Bates is a Livonia resident who lives nearby.

"I didn’t know if we had to leave from here and go somewhere else the whole time it was happening," she said. "It was scary."

Cellphone video from Wayne County Homeland Security and emergency services shows that truck leaking ferric chloride onto the road.

The chemical is typically used to treat sewage and purify water.

"They were out here for hours, all I heard was noises all night," Bates said.

Crews from Farmington Hills and Wayne County worked on the clean up alongside third-party contractors FOX 2 saw sweeping the roads Tuesday - hours after the spill. 

"We’ve had different small spills, nothing of this magnitude," said Livonia Fire Chief Wade Clay. "The biggest thing was getting traffic stopped so the cars would stop going through the product. And then us being able to get in the truck and identify to make sure what was compromised, and what the product was for sure."

They say since the vehicle leaking the acid stopped on Middlebelt Road just south of Eight Mile Road, the Livonia Fire and Rescue Department were also called to the scene.

Officials declared there was no environmental threat, adding the chemical did not get into any sewers and waterways.

But there was extra precaution clearing the chemicals from the road.

 Samer Jaafar is the director of Homeland Security and Emergency Services.

"When it hardens, it turns into iron ferric, which becomes more of a solid so it becomes more difficult to clean up," he said. "Middle Belt being a county road we wanted to make sure that we were here and the road was safe and get it open as soon as possible."

Officals say the trucking company is on the hook for cleanup costs. Meanwhile, making sure the community and families like Bates' who live on this stretch of road feel safe again, is top priority. 

The Western Wayne Hazardous Materials Response Team was also sent to the scene due to the hazard of the incident.

The hazmat technicians wore specialized level A hazmat suits to enter the semi-trailer and stop the leak.