On Monday, a truck transporting 40,000 pounds of hazardous soil from East Palestine, Ohio, crashed, spilling almost half of its load onto the road before it even left the state.
When the collision happened, the open-top tractor-trailer was moving north on SR-165 in Columbiana County.
According to the outlet, 74-year-old driver Phillip Falck veered off the right side of the road, struck a ditch and a utility pole, and then overturned.
The truck was “on its side” when police arrived, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
Additionally responding were the neighborhood fire department and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
Truck carrying toxic soil from East Palestine train derailment overturns on highway https://t.co/szd3MW4a5k pic.twitter.com/m3zru7C1QZ
— New York Post (@nypost) April 11, 2023
The 20,000 pounds of spilled soil were deemed to be contained and pose no harm to any waterways.
Falck was cited for driving without reasonable control and suffered minor injuries.
The earth was being moved out of East Palestine, after a Norfolk Southern train crashed on February 3 and spilled numerous dangerous materials onto the neighborhood.
Thousands of fish reportedly died from exposure to the chemicals, and residents were evacuated.
The procedure to remove polluted soil and water from the site is still in progress more than two months later.
Approximately 11.4 million gallons of wastewater and 19,900 tons of earth were transported out of the region, according to state officials on Monday.
On Monday, the East Liverpool City Hospital East Palestine Clinic opened its doors in the neighborhood.
It will take the place of the temporary assessment facility that was established following the tragic incident.
