Environmental cleanup crews remain on the scene at Rocky Creek where an unknown substance with a strong odor was located.
The activity began Wednesday morning, Nov. 17, when Augusta Fire/Rescue was called to the area of North Leg Road and Commerce Drive on reports of a gasoline-like smell. The hazmat team was brought in when they discovered an unknown substance.
Jason DeHart, public information officer for Augusta Fire Department, said environmental cleanup crews were brought in. They contained and removed the substance. The crews are now working on hazard mitigation and containment.
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The Savannah Riverkeeper has also been on the scene. Executive Director Tonya Bonitatibus suspects someone may have been washing down a piece of equipment in a parking lot and the runoff went into a ditch and then the creek.
“Hopefully, the creek will continue to flush itself,” she said. “It’s lucky because there’s no rain. That allowed for a greater ability to remove the product. And as far as I can tell, they’ve kept it out of Phinizy Swamp, which was very important.”
She said the city crews set up boons along Rocky Creek to stop the chemical from flowing downstream. She does not believe the groundwater will be impacted.
Bonitatibus also said she saw a large number of fish killed.
“The fish didn’t die because of dissolved oxygen or pH, which are kind of your standards. To me, that’s pretty disconcerting. That means the chemical itself was killing the fish,” she said.
She says there can be an educational component to this situation if it helps people understand when they change their oil or flush chemicals from their property, it goes into the storm drain. From there, it ends up in a creek or the river, and that negligence impacts other people.
“I hope that the person responsible is held fully, fully responsible. They should pay for all of the mobilization that happened yesterday,” said Bonitatibus. “I think it’s probably unfortunate. It’s likely somebody who maybe didn’t realize what they were doing. But the fact is that this is an expensive response that, unless the person is held responsible, will be on the backs of the taxpayers.”
DeHart said the investigation is being handled by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division. Kevin Chambers, EPD Director of Communications, said there is no additional information to release yet.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a Staff Reporter with The Augusta Press. You can reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com
