Fuel Spill Forces Evacuation of Lancaster Service Station
A 200-gallon gasoline spill Sunday forced the evacuation of a Lancaster gas station and caused traffic to be rerouted for nearly an hour, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said.
Employees and customers at the Unocal gas station at 10th Street West and Avenue K were immediately evacuated after the 9 a.m. spill, said Deputy Wayne Kiger. There were no injuries.
A tanker truck was unloading gasoline into an underground storage tank when a car backed over the truck’s delivery hose, knocking it loose and causing about 200 gallons of fuel to run down a curbside gutter and into a nearby sewer, Kiger said.
Los Angeles County firefighters were sent to the scene as a precaution, and traffic had to be diverted from the area for about an hour during the cleanup, Kiger said.
The driver of the truck, Francisco Lozano, 36, and his employer, ITL, were cited for numerous safety violations, including failure to put up traffic cones and properly monitor the fuel delivery operation, Kiger said.
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