Cleanup Continues at Sturgeon River Accident

Local, state, and federal officials and private contractors are coordinating cleanup and environmental monitoring at the Sturgeon River Bridge on US 41 south of Chassell, site of last Saturday’s four-vehicle accident.

Cleanup crews are removing soil and snow impacted by the gasoline and diesel fuel release.

Air quality monitoring and sampling has been conducted under the direction of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the immediate area and adjacent homes.

Air quality monitoring also is being done near stockpiled snow and soil to verify that there are no immediate health and safety concerns for the community and workers.

Arrangements are being made to transport impacted materials off site for disposal so that the area can be backfilled and guardrail replaced.

The health department also received the following statement from Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ):
“The DEQ has evaluated all municipal drinking water intakes in the vicinity and none are threatened by the release of petroleum products from the accident on US-41 near the Sturgeon River this past weekend. The DEQ is working with the company’s consultant and the Western U.P. Health Department to evaluate potential impacts to individual water supply wells in the vicinity of the accident.”

For more information regarding individual water wells, please contact WUPHD Environmental Health Director Tanya Rule at 906-482-7382, or by email at trule@wuphd.org.

For more information regarding community water supply intakes, please contact Bob London, DEQ Drinking Water and Municipal Assistance Division (DWMAD) at 989-450-7834, or by email at londonr@michigan.gov.

Western U.P. will release updated information as the cleanup operation continues, and will post bulletins on its web site, wuphd.org. The updates will be shared with Chassell Township officials for posting at the township web site, Chassell.net.