Mineral oil leaks into Little Hunting Creek after transformer breaks
A transformer behind the Mount Vernon Plaza Shopping Center was struck by a truck on Friday afternoon, leading to a mineral oil leak that went into nearby Little Hunting Creek.
The incident. which was reported around 2:45 p.m., caused around 350 gallons of mineral oil from the transformer to leak, according to the Fairfax Fire & Rescue Department. Images posted by the fire department showed sand, booms and other spill containment materials guarding a storm drain near the transformer.
Dominion Energy spokeswoman Peggy Fox said Saturday that the transformer broke after a delivery truck behind the Shoppers in the plaza hit it. The truck drove away without reporting the incident.
The damage from the truck was extensive enough that oil began leaking from the transformer, causing it to catch fire, Fox said. The small fire caused a power outage, and when Dominion crews arrived on the scene, they discovered the burning transformer and oil leak, Fox said.
The fire was out by the time Fairfax Fire and Rescue arrived, according to the department’s Facebook page, which characterized the incident as a transformer “explosion.”
State Sen. Scott Surovell (D-36), said Saturday said that approximately 200 gallons of the oil went into the creek, which runs behind the shopping center. He said he had been in touch with Dominion and would be posting updates, and added that better stormwater infrastructure could have helped prevent oil from getting to the creek.
“Monitoring will be ongoing and take weeks,” Surovell said on Facebook. “This is obviously an environmentally sensitive area and I will post up comments if I have any updates. This also underscores how important it is for us to update our stormwater infrastructure.”
Fox said that crews contracted by Dominion were at the site performing cleanup until 10 p.m. Friday and then returned to the scene on Saturday.
This story has been updated with new information from Dominion Energy.
Other information says that a delivery truck backed into the transformer and dislodged it, then left the scene without reporting it.
Thanks Martin. Just updated story w/ that information, had conflicting information earlier.
No word on what charges are pending against the truck driver?
Per Dominion, the truck didn’t stick around. No announcements yet from Fire Marshal or FCPD about investigation.
While I agree that our storm water infrastructure needs to be upgraded to better protect our watersheds the central questions are how and at what cost. There are 1,000’s if not 10’s of 1,000’s of storm water drains in the County and perhaps millions of such drains throughout Virginia. Will the state or the counties be able to afford the cost of the storm water technology and the cost of maintaining such technology? Will counties need to impose storm water management fees or “taxes” to pay for the storm water infrastructure improvements?
Could the site permitting process be part of the storm water management process? Should developers be required to disclose whether there will be any hazardous materials stored or used on the site? If so required developers to provide a risk mitigation plan for ensuring such materials are not leaked or spilled into the the storm water system. Should those businesses that plan to occupy the developed space be required to disclose whether any hazardous materials will be stored our used in their facilities and provide a similar risk mitigation to help minimize the impact of any spillages or leaks into the storm water system? Should businesses using or storing hazardous materials be required to provide proof of insurance to pay for any environmental damages caused by leaks or spillages of hazardous materials used by their business?
Is legislation required to enable local governmental agencies to implement such policies and fine businesses that fail to comply?