Buckets of Combustible Liquid Dropped on Buford Hwy

Traffic was jammed up on Buford Highway near Mitchell Road in Norcross yesterday after about six five-gallon buckets of a clear combustible fluid had to be removed from the roadway by a Hazmat, or Hazardous Material, team.

The buckets fell off of a flatbed truck and “could have been an irritant if exposed in a confined environment,” according to the fire department.

A Hazmat team was called to the scene, who used an absorbant to neutralize the liquids.

Norcross Police Chief Dallas Stidd said he was aware of the problem last night at the city council meeting—but he was impressed with the quickness of the clean-up. 

Tommy Rutledge of Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services said that the spill caused the southbound lanes of Buford Highway to close. Crews were dispatched to the scene at 3:42 p.m. and the lanes were reopened at 5:11 p.m., causing a traffic back-up into Historic Norcross.

Five different county vehicles were dispatched to the scene, including at a medic unit, a ladder truck, a battalion commander and the Hazmat crew. 

Rutledge says the quick actions of the Hazardous Material team kept the danger to a minimum.