Truck Spills Fuel in Chatham, Madison

A truck making a delivery to Stop & Shop in Madison Friday night leaked fuel along Main Street—also known as Route 124—in both Madison and Chatham.

The leakage prompted a major cleanup effort, as Chatham Borough fire officials, Madison police officers and fire officials, Madison Department of Public Works members and Morris County Hazmat officials were on the scene to manage the fuel spill. The truck reportedly spilled about 50 gallons of oil.

The leakage was reported just after 8 p.m. Friday. Madison Council President and Public Safety Liaison Jeannie Tsukamoto, who was at the scene, said firefighters had told her that the truck driver, who was making a delivery to Stop & Shop, discovered the leak when he stopped there.

Chatham Borough police had already reported that a truck was leaking fuel all along Main Street.

Tsukamoto said that county Hazmat officials had assured her that it was unlikely fuel had made its way into a storm drain, so there was no imminent threat to anyone living in Madison. In the Stop & Shop parking lot, fire officials worked to spread sand along the fuel covering so the road so it could quickly be absorbed.

Most of the fuel along Main Street had already evaporated, she said, and was in a thin layer along the street. It had not yet been sanded, but officials said it was not immediately combustible.

Still, the scene was a blaze of flashing emergency lights as police officers secured the scene and officials assured worried shoppers that everything was OK. Outside, the smell of fuel hung in the air as fire officials held buckets underneath the leaking fuel tank to catch the excess oil.

The driver, who was operating a truck owned by CNS Trucking, declined to comment at the scene.