[UPDATE: 101 Open With One Way Traffic Control] Overturned Gas Tanker on 101 South of Peg House
A Renner gas tanker overturned on Hwy 101 north of Leggett and south of the Peg House about 6:30 this morning. The driver is stuck in the vehicle, according to a witness and the CHP Traffic Incident Information Page.
The northbound lane is blocked, according to the CHP page. “Fluid on ground,” reports the page.
Please remember that information gathered from initial reports is subject to revision as more facts become available.
UPDATE 6:50 a.m.: The tanker is leaking and 101 will need to be closed, according to the CHP page. Renner is sending an empty truck “and will be able to pump fuel [out of] the overturned trailer,” the CHP page states.
The driver is out of the vehicle and walking around.
UPDATE 6:55 a.m.: According to Jonathan Beck, a truck driver on the scene, 101 will be closed for some time. The driver is out of the overturned truck and okay, he said. Beck was one of the first on the scene he said and he and others piled dirt to stop the flowing gasoline from going into a nearby storm drain.
The truck is in bad condition, Beck said.
UPDATE 7:19 a.m.: The CHP site said that the driver was taken by ambulance to the Garberville Hospital as a precaution.
UPDATE 8:41 a.m.: Caltrans is suggesting motorists use I-5. They tweeted,
Hwy 101 closed north of Leggett in Mendocino County due to overturned truck leaking fluid. Not known when re-open. Motorist must go around closure and use I-5. For updates on road conditions:
The leaking tank is posing a danger to the area.
Witness Jonathan Beck provided the following photos. Note the liquid in the first is gas, he said.
![An overturned semi has closed 101 north of Leggett. Gas has leaked from the tank onto the road. [Photo by Jonathan Beck]](https://kymkemp.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/51206931_781575248868926_776380892837838848_n.jpg)
An overturned semi has closed 101 north of Leggett. Gas has leaked from the tank onto the road. [Photo by Jonathan Beck]
An overturned semi has closed 101 north of Leggett. [Photo by Jonathan Beck]
The CHP sent out the following press release:
On 02/05/2019, at approximately 0620 hours, a semi-truck tanker, driven by Archie Campbell of Willits, CA., was traveling northbound on US-101, north of Leggett, in Mendocino County. The semi-truck was carrying a cargo of gasoline fuel. For reasons still under investigation, the semi-truck collided with Jitney Gultch bridge rail while negotiating the left hand curve of the bridge. The semi-truck overturned onto the roadway, blocking the northbound lane of US-101. As a result of the collision, the tank trailer began leaking fuel onto the roadway and shoulder. CHP personnel responded to the scene and assumed incident command. The driver was transported to Jerold Phelps Community Hospital for minor injuries. DUI does not appear to be a factor in this collision.
Due to the fuel spilling onto the roadway and surrounding area, Haz-Mat protocols were established. Mendocino County Environmental health was notified. US-101 has been shut down in both directions. Northbound traffic is being turned around at SR-1 and southbound traffic is being turned around at Reynolds Overcrossing, south of Piercy. An estimated time of reopening has not been determined at this time.
The California Highway Patrol Garberville Area office is investigating this collision.
The California Highway Patrol would like to remind motorists to slow down and use caution when driving in inclement weather.
UPDATE:101 Back Open
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Dang it ……. fluid on the ground
🕯That stuff can be worse than black ice and it’s flammable. Be safe.
Can’t give it away today,dang it, free fuel and no takers, is there a f? And I’d like to buy a vowel, …
If some meth tweaker throws a match in that, it`ll be better than 4th of July. It might even make the evening news if the whole thing goes up.
Well, if some meth tweaker does, you can say you thought of it first.
If some closet piro thinks about it and writes about…
Yep i just tried to go to work at the Peg House and 101 is closed at the intersection Of hwy 1 and 101 cal trans said it would be a few hours till its open and this was at 7:25 AM
He’s still alive, don’t take him to garberville! Just keep on going to fortuna.Hes likely to come out of garberville hospital worse then he went in
Dangerous proposition. Wife use to work there and said more than a few checked in but left in a box!
There goes his job. Those good ole boys at Renner don’t tolerate such shenanigans.
Glad to hear the driver is okay. I would guess ice on the roadway caused him to loose control of the truck. Thanks to the guys that piled dirt around the leaking gas. Everyone please drive safely.
Smart-thinking with the dirt to stop the fuel from entering the ecosystem. Thank you!
Yes indeed. A great mixture of creativity and hard work.
Kim- Can you Post when 101 is reopened? We’ll be heading home up the highway this PM. Thanks for keeping us all informed!
From what I understand, the road may not be opened for hours but yes, I will post as soon as I can.
As of 2 p.m., I’m hearing that it will likely open this evening.
Any updates? We’re trying to be in Eureka by 7. Is Bell Spring in good condition?
Kim,
Of course this is the first time I didn’t check the network for news. I traveled from Eureka and JUST now found out about the closure. There is NO sign.
Fuel trucks should be required to carry some kind of containment boom or absorbent dam thing in case of accident so there is material on hand to contain a possible leak. Isn’t that the 3rd Renner truck in recent memory to take a spill off the road? Big Lagoon being the most recent one. The company should be heavily fined for spilling fuel and they should institute financial incentives for their drivers to slow down.
THEY DO
Why haven’t they been using them?
most booms and absorbent kits only mop up several gallons, not a 1,000 or so gallons. this spill will require excavation of the shoulder. if it were diesel the driver is allowed to deploy adsorbents, but not gasoline. gasoline requires evacuation. the area needs to be foamed to reduce the volatility before cleanup can occur.
The lack of using booms and/or adsorbents might have had something to do with the driver being trapped in the truck. Once he got out and was walking around perhaps he was not thinking clearly, or the spill had already been contained by the other drivers that used dirt to block the runoff. It sounds like it could have been much worse.
I’ve seen someone spin out on snow/ice going twenty miles an hour; just yesterday in fact. Black ice is even more dangerous, and not very common in our area. There are areas that have it here in cold weather of course, and sometimes warning signs are posted. They usually are yellow and read “ICY”.
It seems like we are turning our community and culture in to a club of Darwin Award winners. Slowing down while driving on the road in slippery conditions is an easy concept to grasp, isn’t it?
Good way to get rid of fuel is to light a match.
I bet that he was under the influence of drugs. Otherwise he would have known to slow down due to the road conditions. I bet he will try to blame it someone that was driving a car saying that they cut him off or something that made him swerve and wreck because you know that they are the safest drivers on the road
BET YOU ARE TOO, ISN’T EVERYONE?
Nope.
Truck driver will be drug tested, State law if involved in a accident they are tested for drugs.
Federal law requires a urine test if an injury occurs or a tow vehicle is required.
He was not driving under anything….not even your pot driving asses ….
Sounds like you know how accident happened, “were you the one in the car in his lane?”
Why do people need to say stuff like this. I really doubt he was under the influence. How about the roads are very icy in that area. Hope the drive is ok.
You’re an idiot. I was there who pulled him out. HE HIT A PATCH OF BLACK ICE! You dumb ignorant bastards think you know it all, huh? As soon as a truck wrecks you blame drugs. You’re a moron. He hit black ice, and once 80,000 pounds goes sliding on ice, no matter what speed you’re going, it’ll take you out. So shut your mouth before being an idiot
Thank You !! Always blaming speed .. not just natures weather … and thank you for braving getting on that truck to get him out ……
I belive it’s called trolling…..
To ‘tragic 101’I personally know this driver. You’re not only off base, but way out of line with your comments. He’s a professional driver, not a snowball chance in hell was he under the influence of anything. The miles we, in our industry, travel. The varied driving conditions we operate in. The motorists that are not paying attention or just behaving badly. Accidents happen. I hope you’ll never be in a traffic accident. But when, and if, you are,,, I hope no one rushes to judgement and condemns you for being under the influence. Unless of course you are. Then may you reap what you sow.
Fuel drivers are top notch drivers. They don’t let any asshat drive 10,000 gallons of explosive fuel down a public highway.
Driver swerved to miss Humboldt’s pink flying squirrels
I came up on that accident before emergency service vehicles had arrived but after others were already on site. I had left Benbow on my way to the Bay Area earlier. There was a lot of snow all around that area. The roads were cold and icy. Most likely that truck lost traction on that turn.
Its first if all a valley Pacific truck… second of all ride a bike! If you think they need even more regulations to drive these trucks . These guys work hard to keep us fueled , and have to pay out enough because of all the stuff they go thru just to be able to drive these trucks. FOR THE CRAP PAY THEY MAKE.
Thank you!
fuel deliveries should be decreased by 20% a year for the next five years. that’ll get us to 50% of what we currently have delivered and be a real start toward our dire need to cut carbon emissions.
and those fuel deliveries should come by boat not truck. we can get a week’s worth in just on ship. use the trucks to short hall deliveries to the stations.
this will also help reduce damage and needed repairs to our roads. we need to spend less on repairs as time moves forward
caltrans mission needs to expand from only roads to all forms of transit. their budget dedicated roads needs to also be cut by 20% per year for five years. the money cut from roads needs to go to the possible mass transit options for each area.
trump didnt say climate change one time, but he did talk about american now being an ‘energy exporter’ his grandchildren should sue him. what are they supposed to use when hes sold all that they had?
the ladies in white knew better. they stayed seated for that nonsense.
By the way most fuel comes by barge … but barge can not get in to out bay with large storms….
Stop supporting wasteful luxuries that people don’t need for survival, grow as much of your own food as you can. Don’t travel for recreation unless it is by foot. Teleconference instead of flying to meetings. No one needs a lushly landscaped university campus with parking everywhere and imported students. So many ways to cut the carbon footprint.
Ernestine / Bringing fuel in by ship/barge would be like stopping the manufacturing of LED lightbulbs in the US & shipping them from another country. How much of a carbon footprint do you think all those ships & barges leave behind when they are coming from another country?
valley pacific bought Renner.
Yes but the last truck that was a renner truck by oreck was not a renner it was a Chris renner … whole different company …
valley pacific didn’t buy C-Renner, they bought L&M Renner. the truck that flipped at Big Lagoon was a C-Renner hauling Diesel from L&M Renner. different companies but brothers.
They are multi-millionaires. The tanks should be lined with self sealing bladders to prevent spills. We have the tech bit it’s not implemented because they are forced to is it.
First are there really such things at all? Considering that tankers are usually not one large tank but have a series of baffles to stabilize the movement of liquids? And while self sealing can hold back small leaks, would it really keep the various ports, valves and hatches from springing leaks if the tanker trailer tips over?
Stabilizing the movement of liquids occurs through the shape of the trailer, not compartments inside.
Not all liquid carrying trailers are separated into compartments inside.
Many that carry gas have seperate compartments because of the different grades of gas available to consumers.
Baffles, not compartments. But that too I suppose if they have them.
Actually looking at my comment, I gave the wrong impression.
While the shape is the main stabilizer, baffles inside and compartments add further layers of stabilization.
Sorry bout that.
riding a bicycle on black ice doesn’t work very well either. You just pedal and pedal and pedal and
No, south to the hospital at Howard Memorial in Willits. Adventist Health in a brand new hospital is not only closer, but far superior in comparison to anything North.
Agree with you on this. Howard Memorial is amazing.
Jitney creek bridge is very dangerous, the road is banked wrong and is a trap for those unfamiliar. Plus, there may well have been ice on it in the wee hours.
Best advice always is SLOW DOWN.
There are warning signs, a speed radar sign, blinking lights….. going too fast on that bridge is willful ignorance.
5 mph is too fast on black ice, especially with the bridge banked off camber. Would you have been driving 2-3 mph? Did he know there was ice on the bridge? Obviously not.
light it on fire to keep it contained or out of the waterways
So many thanks to the quick thinking citizens blocking the fuel from storm drain!!!!!
Thats a gnarly looking smash, and fyi even the most trained sober driver can hit black ice and crash. Not much room on that stretch of 101, better smash the hillside than down to river. Glad hes ok!
Fuel is by far the slipperiest worst slipping thing to try to drive on so beyond the enviro issues the road really needs all fuel off of itbefore safe to drive.
So I’m heading to the Bay area. How is Bell springs road looking today???
I would not try it, i am sure it has too much snow.
When AAA drags your car back to civilization, let us know how far you got.
Is there any update on when it might reopen??
That little bridge is super dangerous.. multiple roll overs there
Thanks for your updates and information on the closure and conditions..
Any update on the closure?? Visiting from out of state and currently stuck due to closure of 101.
Does anyone know if the roads have opened back up yet?
Any updates??
Bring you’re siphoning hose and a few gas cans FREE GAS EVERYONE !!!!!!
What will it ever take to get that bridged replaced Caltrans would rather argue millions away in Richardson grove. I saw a fellows binders break there once, as load shifted… thought i was a gonner!
Trucker northbound was told around 11am it would be 10 hour wait, by Cal-Trans.
Stuck in line. Heard a worker say “still another hour or so – who knows”.
Thank you for update
Thank you for keeping us updated
The dot website says one lane controlled
Update update update plz
Open as of 5:10 pm.
Thank you to the truckers and everyone who helped keep the spill out of the storm drain. I am glad the trucker who crashed is ok. This could have been much worse.
So true .. I’m glad driver will. Be ok … if Caltrans had put down gravel this may not have happened….sad that california will not allow any clean up till all their officials get there …so more fines more damage more money … too much bureaucratic crap …. this. State sucks cause more damage them good …
I’ll 2nd this (3rd it, actually). Well said!
I think that you should hold your tounges unless you have ever driven a tanker or worse double tankers, when filled with liquid they control you, that driver was doing excatly what he was supposed to be doing.
I know from experience!! When the truck moves any movement causes liquid to push the trailers/truck forwards, side to side you cant really do much but try too slow into corners and stops. There is no book, no rules and no app that can teach anyone whats going to happens. God forbid you drive in bad weather, on slick roads. So back off!! And back off the Renners, any of them.
They hire good people. The Renners are safety conscious people.
Next you post that bad things only happen to bad people.
And Johnathan, dont brag about helping this man and ttying to stop the fuel when you posted pictures of the wreck and fuel spill. What where you thinking fellow trucker? Judgement by media. Nice job. Youve never had had an accident now have you??, or maybe you did… yes this is mother trucker and not perfect.
I agree that the icy roads are tough and I sympathize with the driver and wish people weren’t so quick to blame people. BUT Jonathan provided a service to all drivers including truckers so they could see what they were facing and make their best judgement on what to do yesterday. The size of the liquid spill I am sure led many to understand this would not be a short delay. Please, while speaking up for someone who likely deserves your words of support, don’t blame someone who is trying to help. Focus on those who caused the problem.
I live in Piercy…this confirms I’ll always pack an overnight bag when heading south for dental and medical. I’ve had to travel Bell Springs 3 times in recent years….that road was/is tramatizing for this Ole lady.