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AMMON, Idaho — Part of a street in Ammon was closed off on Wednesday due to a solid waste spill that stretched at least a mile.
After the spill, an unpleasant odor wafted along Sunnyside Road near Crowley Road.
Bonneville County Fire District No. 1 Ammon Division responded to the spill on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
"There was an (Eastern Idaho Regional Sewer District) dump truck full of waste from the processing plant, and it was driving down Sunnyside when it hit the railroad tracks in front of Walker Produce. The gate came open … and started dropping stuff. The driver pulled over to try and get the gate reset," Ammon Fire Marshal Keith Banda said.
Banda said the truck was eastbound on Sunnyside and was headed to the dump.
Sewer district president Brian Powell told EastIdahoNews.com that the spill was not raw sewage.
"It's already gone through primary treatment and screening. Think of it more like it was manure," he said.
It could be a mixture of what is flushed down the toilet, what gets put down the garbage disposal, or what gets washed off at a car wash but has already gone through the necessary treatment.
Powell said public safety officials checked in with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality in Pocatello, and it was determined it's not harmful.
Pictures taken by EastIdahoNews.com show emergency vehicles blocking the road along with thick, brown material on the ground. Banda pointed to what was on the ground and said that was the spilled waste.
"Right now, the city of Ammon and the fire district … are watering it down to get it off the roadway," Banda added. "It's going to take a while. We have got to let it dry. It will make the road extra slick if we don't let it dry."
The Bonneville County Sheriff's Office provided traffic control and closed part of Sunnyside and Crowley, warning that drivers should be cautious and aware of detours.
