Fuel spill cleanup continues at Olympia School District facility

Cold weather has bogged down efforts to clean up a fuel spill at the Olympia School District’s bus barn in Tumwater.

“It’s going to take a few more days,” Department of Ecology spokesman Chase Gallagher said Wednesday. “Part of (the delay) was the ice was thawing on the pond.”

Ecology workers responded to the gasoline spill that was reported about 1:20 p.m. Monday at the facility in the 3000 block of RW Johnson Boulevard.

The cause of the spill is still under investigation. Crews estimate that between 20 to 50 gallons spilled while a truck was delivering fuel at the site, Gallagher said.

“The investigation will determine a responsible party, and the responsible party will be held liable for cleanup costs and potentially be issued a penalty,” he said.

The gasoline ran across the asphalt to a catch basin and entered a stormwater retention pond, officials say.

School district spokeswoman Susan Gifford said the spill appears to have been contained in the storm drain system, and the Department of Fish and Wildlife said there was no immediate danger to wildlife.

National Response Corporation Environmental Services has been hired to clean up the spill, she said.

This story was originally published January 6, 2016 at 9:52 AM with the headline "Fuel spill cleanup continues at Olympia School District facility."