Truck With Leak That Caused South Jersey Stench Heads Out Of State

EAST GREENWICH, NJ — The tanker truck that had a chemical reaction that spurred a leak that triggered an unpleasant odor was removed on Friday from the East Greenwich travel center where it sat since the Aug. 10 incident, officials said.

The tanker truck's next destination is an out-of-state hazardous waste disposal facility, according to the Gloucester County Office on Emergency Management.

The vehicle's removal comes one day after the same office said the leak had "fully ceased" and allowed the truck stop to reopen and about nine days after the incident first began.

The tanker truck was hauling a chemical identified as Lubrizol 1389 through South Jersey on Aug. 10 when it began leaking methyl mercaptan and hydrogen sulfide, officials have previously said.
The smell has dissipated in the air, but may remain for some time, officials have also previously said.

During a town hall meeting held Tuesday in response to the Aug. 10 incident, Michael Reilly, a project toxicologist with the Center for Toxicology and Environment Health said the leak posed no risk on the area's tap water, shower water, municipal water and other water sources.

He continued, "there is nowhere in the scientific literature, where anyone points to ... long-term health effects associated with exposures to methyl mercaptan or hydrogen sulfide at levels that you can detect them with your nose, but you cannot detect them with your instruments. I can
say that with 100 percent certainty."

TransChem has set up an Informational Center in the Berkley Square parking lot (141 Berkley Road, Clarksboro, NJ) that is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. to take in-person questions and to file claims, Gloucester County officials have previously said.

Those who are unable to visit the Informational Center and wish to file a claim can call 855-476-7817, while those who have questions regarding the tanker truck's impact on their health can call 856-807-5388 during those same hours, according to Gloucester County officials

A Gloucester County woman filed a lawsuit against trucking company TransChem USA late last week, saying the Aug 10. incident exposed her and other residents to "dangerous levels of
chemical vapors."

The woman's attorney did not return Patch's request for comment, and TransChem has previously told Patch it does comment on pending litigation.

This story contains reporting by Michelle Rotuno-Johnson.

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