OXNARD : Diesel Fuel Spill Results in Gridlock

A diesel fuel spill at a busy south Oxnard intersection snarled traffic throughout the day Monday as cars were forced to detour through residential streets while road crews worked to clean up the mess, authorities said.

The spill occurred about 6 a.m. when the driver of a tractor-trailer rig carrying explosives and ammunition tried to make a U-turn over the median on Ventura Road south of Channel Islands Boulevard and tipped over.

While crossing over the median, two of the truck’s fuel tanks ruptured, spilling about 150 gallons of diesel fuel onto the street and into a storm drain.

The storm drain joins a flood control channel along Channel Islands Boulevard that empties into Channel Islands Harbor.

Crews from the Oxnard Fire Department blocked the fuel from reaching the ocean by quickly constructing barriers in the channel, said Lt. John Suchil of the state Fish & Game Department. A private company was also hired by the trucking firm, Byron-based Diablo Enterprises, to soak up fuel in the storm drain and flood control channel.

Throughout the morning, the northbound lanes of Ventura Road were shut down south of Channel Islands Boulevard. Cars were forced to detour onto Redwood and M streets, then back onto Channel Islands Boulevard.

“It was gridlock,” said Port Hueneme Police Sgt. Ken Dobbe. “It couldn’t have happened at a worse place.”

At the request of police, the U.S. Naval Construction Battalion Center also closed its Sunkist Street gate during evening rush hour Monday to avoid sending hundreds of cars toward the spill site.

By 2 p.m. one northbound lane on Ventura Road was reopened, but both turning lanes onto Channel Islands Boulevard were expected to remain closed until this morning. Crews planned to flush water through the storm drain and dig out algae that had soaked up the fuel, officials said.

Dobbe said the incident is still under investigation and no citations have been issued. The truck’s cargo was destined for the Air National Guard unit at Point Mugu.