Fuel Spill: Highland Falls on Backup Water Supply

HIGHLAND FALLS, NY — A truck overturned dumping about 1,400 gallons of diesel fuel into the Highland Brook. The village of Highland Falls has been switched to a backup water supply. Local and state emergency responders are at the scene.

The spill has been contained with absorbent booms deployed by the State Department of Environmental Conservation.

Water supply intake pumps were immediately shut off. The village has been transferred over to its backup water supply until further notice "out of an abundance of caution," state officials said. The Director of the State Office of Emergency Management is on site with regional staff and has bottled water from the regional stockpile on standby.

"At my direction, New York has launched an immediate and coordinated response to this morning's spill in the Village of Highland Falls," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in an announcement about the spill. "Emergency response experts from multiple state agencies are on site and have already contained the spill. Staff will remain on site to ensure the Village's drinking water supply is protected and that the clean-up is completed as swiftly as possible."

State officials are working with the West Point and Fort Montgomery Fire Departments, Orange County Hazardous Materials Teams and Village of Highland Falls officials to ensure the spill is contained.

The state departments of Environmental Conservation and Health are now assessing impacts to the water supply and determining when regular water service can resume. As part of this process, the Department of Health will expedite analysis of these water samples at its Wadsworth Laboratory.

DEC's Spills Response crew is also on site with its Emergency Response Trailer and will monitor the site for threats to public health and the environment, which will include the use of a drone to provide aerial mapping of the spill to support response efforts.

PHOTO/ New York State